Yuri The Forgotten Years
by Nights Mistress
Summary: This is the story of Yuri Hyuga, a man of mystery and violence. Read on to find who he really is
1. The Dissonance of Madness

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Blood…..so much blood…

Yuri Hyuga slowly turned around, brown eyes wide, looking but not registering the carnage before him. Blood dripped off the walls, forming clotting, crimson pools on the originally pristine floor. He glanced around his feet. Small torn pieces of an animal _no, it's human_ were strewn across the floor, creating a macabre jigsaw puzzle.

"Why?" escaped from his lips. Or rather, what? What monster did this in his own home? He didn't remember much, only fragments. A knock on the door, mum screaming for him to run, the demons striking her down, then….nothing.

Mum! Where was she? "Mum?" he called. Then more plantively, "Mummy?" No answer. What if…she was the person dismembered, their flesh thrown to the winds? Yuri prayed that this wasn't true, that she would walk in the door and wipe his tears away.

His hopes were dashed as he stepped on a human hand. Slender, graced with the wedding ring his father gave her, Anne Hyuga's hand was the only recognisable object in the room. Yuri collapsed into the gore and started crying uncontrollably.

'Yuri…' whispered a voice, faint and insubstantial. Yuri's head shot up. "Who's there?" he cried, trying to sound defiant, but betrayed by a quaver in his voice.

'I ….don't have …..much time…..Yuri. Get my….pendant….on the desk.' Yuri staggered upright, and wavered over to the desk. There was his father's cresent moon talisman, hanging on a silver chain. He picked it up and placed it around his neck.

'Get…the book…too. And remember…to find me…..drink from….the grail….remove your masks…….fight your fear.' The voice faded into nothing. Yuri, finally realising who it was screamed "Dad!"

'Yuri…..Vladivostok, Russia…..Ivan and Katerina Milovitch…..Anne's son…..I'm sorry'

"Dad? Why are you sorry? Are you coming back? Why do I have to leave?" Yuri opened his mouth for another question when a dark presence overtook his mind. "Hello boy," a cool baritone commented. "I'll just make myself at home shall I?" Yuri felt his body changing, warping into a form belonging in his nightmares. He screamed and ran, away from the house, toward the north.

----------Three Months Later, Vladivostok, Russia----------

Sasha Vasily wandered aimlessly on the outskirts of town. His mother would constantly scold him for this, preferring that he stay closer to home. Sasha hated doing that. His mother would never let him grow up. Sometimes he wished that his mother would just leave him alone. It wasn't his fault that his father died from a monster attack three years ago. Maybe, when he got older, he would track down the monster that killed his father, and avenge him.

Sasha was disturbed from his thoughts by a weak "Help me….please?" A gaunt, wasted boy about a year younger then Sasha's 11 years staggered out of the bushes. "Who are you? Who are you looking for? Where are you from?" Sasha asked curiously.

"……Milovitch…." The boy looked at him, pleading with his eyes, then collapsed. Sasha looked down at the boy's unconscious form sprawled in the dirt, shruggec and dragged him to the Milovitch house. Maybe he would get some answers there.

Katerina Milovitch stared at the boy slumped on her late husband's favourite chair. When the Vasily boy dropped him on her door step and banged on her door, she didn't know what to think. Obviously he knew who she was, but who was he? 

"Boy? Do you have a name?" she asked, knowing that he was too far gone in fever to realise that she had asked him his name, but she felt she had to try. 

"Well, he must be someone. Maybe he's got something in his pockets with his name in it or something," she spoke aloud, as she searched through the rags draped on his frame. She gasped in shock when a cresent moon pendant fell out of his shirt-rags. "He's got one of those pendants! Another harmonixer! Wasn't our suffering with Ben Hyuga enough?" Her fear was compounded when a thick tome fell out of his shorts' pocket. She opened the book and read the message inside;

'To my darling son Yuri, may this keep you safe during the dark times ahead' "It's Anne's handwriting!" she exclaimed. "This must be her son. It has to be, otherwise how could he have her good-for-nothing husband's pendant?" Katerina was torn by indecision. If he was an harmonixer like his father, then nothing but evil would come from this, but he was Anne's son, her nephew. "Isn't blood thicker than water?" she asked herself. Convinced, she picked up the young Hyuga and carried him to her son's old bed. She would nurse him back to health, and that's all. 

Yuri wandered in and out of fever dreams, a state he was quite familiar with, ever since his father allowed the monster to take him over. The trip had smeared into hellish, sporatic episodes of running through forest and snow with hunger being the only constant. When the demon stopped outside a town, it retreated, leaving him tottering outside an unknown town. A stranger in a strange land, he staggered toward the houses, hoping that he could beg for food before continuing. He didn't know why he was running, or to where. He only knew a name, which he recited to himself. He needed to rest, his legs would no longer support him.

"No!" he whispered to himself. Unfortunately, his body had other plans, and he collapsed into the bushes on the outskirts of town. Clinging to consciousness, he realised that he would have to get onto the main road, or no-one would ever find him, he would die by the side of the road. He dragged himself upright and wavered onto the main road, in front of a boy, who jabbered at him questions that he could not make out. "Milovitch" he told the boy, hoping he knew who that was, then blackness overtook him.

A light was in his eyes. Yuri tried to cover them with his arm, but couldn't lift it. It was too heavy. Everything hurt. Yuri moaned softly and screwed up his eyes.

"You're awake! Do you know your name?" asked a soft voice, accented with a Russian accent like his mother's.

"Yuri Hyuga," he answered and fell asleep again, the effort of answering taxing all his strength.

Much later, he woke up again, and this time opened his eyes.He quickly closed them, then opened them a fraction. This wasn't his room, nor his parents. Where was he and why was he here? An elfin face framed by short midnight hair filled his vision.

"Hello Yuri. I'm your aunt Katerina," 

"Hi…." Yuri replied nervously. "Where am I? Why am I here? Where's mum and dad?"

Katerina shook her head. 

"You're in Vladivostok, more specifically, my house. I don't know why you're here, nor where your parents are? I was hoping you'd know what happened to Anne. Is she …dead?"

Yuri gasped, eyes going wide.

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A knock on the door, mum on the floor, a human hand….her hand! What did this?

'You did, boy. With my help of course' replied the monster inside his head.

Katerina watched in consternation as Yuri paled. Wide brown eyes stared unseeing, breath quickened by a fear that only Yuri could see. He was only a child, so what could he have seen to terrify him so? 

"Yuri? Yuri! You're safe! Nothing can hurt you now!" she screamed at him, desperatly trying to break his self-imposed terror. When that didn't work, she slapped him, hard. He recoiled and then focused his eyes.

"She's dead. Dad too." Yuri replied blankly. Katerina just looked at him, waiting for more. There was none.

"Okay. You can stay here until you decide what you want to do." With that, she left the room. Yuri watched her leave, then whispered "I don't know what to do."

Yuri spent the next week sleeping. When he wasn't sleeping, he was being force fed food by Aunt Katerina. It wasn't that he wasn't hungry, more like he wasn't interested in food, or the world at the moment. When he thought about it, he was scared of his own apathy, but most of the time, he was too tired to care. 

Eventually, he was sick of lying in bed, so he tried getting up. Bad idea. He was fairly sure that the world shouldn't spin around, nor have a strange sparkle to it. Aunt Katerina walked in the room just as he fell on the ground. Among a lot of scolding, she put him back in bed.

"How are you supposed to heal if you insist on getting up before you're better?" she demanded, hands on hips.

"I'm bored!" Yuri whined. Aunt Katerina looked annoyed for a minute, then left the room. She returned with a book in her left hand. 

"Here, this should keep you entertained," she commented and exited. Yuri watched her leave, then glanced at the book.

"'The Art of Harmonixing.' What's that supposed to mean?" Yuri questioned. No answer forthcoming, he opened the cover. He read the first paragraph;

"'All creatures have souls, it is what animates what is otherwise lifeless flesh. When a creature dies, their soul escapes into the world, to wander as they will. However, a Harmonixer can attract such spirits and control them. The ultimate control for a Harmonixer is the ability to change to the form of the soul's corporal body before it died. This ability is called fusion, and only select Harmonixers have it. Other Harmonixer abilities include unusual stamina, strength and agility, improved spectral vision (the ability to see disembodied souls) and the ability to reattack disembodied limbs. However, these abilities come at a cost, as the use of undead souls will eventually lead to madness. Also, the Harmonixer will have problems crossing water, for reasons unknown.'" Yuri put the book down.

"Aunt Katerina?" he called. No answer.

"Guess she went out," Yuri reasoned to himself. He picked up the book, and continued reading.

"'A Harmonixer is a magnet for negative energy, and must always be alert as to the intensity of this energy. Originally Harmonixers could sense this energy for themselves, but as time progressed, this ability disappeared, and talismans were made to perform this task. These come in variety of styles, but there is always a cresent moon in the design, a symbol of the changing state of the energy." Yuri pulled out his father's necklace. 

"This is a Harmonixer's talisman? Dad was a Harmonixer?" Yuri continued reading.

"'The Harmonixer talent is passed on from parent to child, without exception. This forms a spiritual bond, which, for the main part, remains unused. The child's talent remains latent until the parent dies, when the bond awakens the talent. The awakening can be violent, depending on the manner of death of the parent. In general, if the parent dies violently, the child's talent will erupt without warning, sending them temporally insane and quite possibly killing anyone within range.'"

Yuri slammed the book shut and threw it across the room.

"I'm not a Harmonixer! I'm NOT! I didn't kill mum, a monster did!" he screamed.

'Ah….Yuri, is it? You are a Harmonixer. Yes a monster did kill your mother. Only thing is, the monster was you. How does it feel to know you killed your own mother?' the undead soul asked mockingly. 'By the way, my name is Death Emperor. I'm here because of the darkness in your soul. Maybe if you weren't so evil, your mother would still be alive." Death Emperor laughed, a low sinister laugh.

"NO!" Yuri screamed shrilly. Katerina ran inside the room and slapped him again.

"Yuri! There's _nothing_ here, you hear me? _Nothing_!" Yuri focused on her and tried to speak. It was too much. Yuri passed out again.

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"Where am I? Why is it dark?" Yuri spun around, searching for light. There was none. "I want to go home now, please let me go." Nothing answered. He was alone in the dark. "Please let me out….I don't like the dark," Yuri said planitively. 

"Are you sure you want to see where you are? Truly?" Yuri nodded, then realised that the person probably couldn't see him.

"…yes" he replied in a small voice.

The darkness disappeared, and Yuri began to fall toward the ground. He shrieked, certain that he would die. He hit the ground, but didn't die. Everything felt broken though. He screamed with the pain. 

"Did the Harmonixer get a boo-boo? You're a monster, inhuman. You don't deserve to live. Maybe you should just die….now!"

"No!" Yuri screamed and woke up.


	2. The Clash of Claws

Weeks of nightmares followed, as if the first was a catalyst, beginning the horror of dreams. Yuri, desperate to find solace from the terror, would attempt to stay awake, refusing the siren song of sleep. Yet every night he would wake in a cold sweat, a shrill scream resonating throughout the room. Eventually Yuri realised the futileness of his refusal, and requested a candle to light his room, hoping that the light, feeble as it was, might allow him to dream without fear.  
  
During the day, Katerina would set him chores that, while not mentally taxing, were physically intensive, in an attempt to exhaust him. Whether it was the candle, or the physical exhaustion, Yuri no longer woke screaming. If he dreamed, he did not remember them.  
  
The book disappeared also. Katerina had no intention of allowing another episode like the previous one occur under her roof. Already the neighbours were talking about the strange boy she had taken in, and his constant screams into the darkness. She needed no such gossip, especially the ones where it was suggested that it was she that tormented the boy so. 'One day, he will have to leave,' she said to herself. Yet that day would never come, because whenever she thought this, an image of the frail boy looking up to her and calling her 'Aunt Katerina' would come to mind. If it wasn't for the damned Harmonixer talent, Yuri might have been the child she and Ivan never had. They had tried for years unsuccessfully, and Katerina always felt that it was her fault. Whenever she said this, Ivan would laugh and say "Katie dearling, 'tis not your fault. God will give us children when we are ready!"  
  
But God never did. There was no God. How could He exist, when he allowed a good man like Ivan to die, and allow his murderer to live? How could God have allowed Ben Hyuga to live, after he murdered her husband?  
  
Flashback: 1887, Vlastovich  
  
Katerina and Ivan were sitting at their kitchen table when Anne waltzed into the room, a reluctant man of average height dragged along behind her. "Katie!!! I want you to meet my fiancé, Ben Hyuga! He asked me to marry him!" Ivan examined his soon to be brother in law. He was an average man in all respects, with his only redeeming feature being his shy smile, filled with adoration as he stared at his fiancée.  
  
"Annie! That's great! Do you want to stay for dinner, Mr Hyuga?" Katerina asked him, glancing over at him.  
  
"If that's alright with you," he said shyly. "I wouldn't want to impose though,"  
  
"Nonsense!" Katerina replied, and it was settled.  
  
Katerina raised a face wet with tears. A month after that dinner, Anne and Ben married in a quiet ceremony. 2 months after the dinner, her life changed forever.  
  
Flashback  
  
The four of them were sitting in Katerina's house, enjoying their last meal together. Tomorrow Ben would return to his barracks, taking Anne with him. The meal was intended to be a celebration, but Ben was not participating. Instead, he picked at his meal, didn't respond to anything spoken to him, and generally acted as though he wasn't there.  
  
"Ben, is something wrong?" Anne asked anxiously. He looked at her and sighed. "I don't know. I feel like something's about to happen, something I won't like." He shrugged. "I guess its just nerves."  
  
As the meal progressed, Ben became more quiet and drawn, as though something was siphoning his energy. Suddenly his head shot up, eyes widening in a pallid face.  
  
"Nooooooo!" he screamed. He stared blindly at the other guests. "STAY AWAY!!!" he yelled, and ran for the door.  
  
"Ben!" cried Anne and stood up to follow.  
  
That was the day Ben Hyuga became a Harmonixer. His father had suicided, driven to insanity by the souls he had collected, and had passed his taint to his son. After Ben ran out the door, Ivan followed him and was sent upon by the unholy fusion of the temporarily mad Ben Hyuga and the soul of darkness. Ivan had no chance. Ben arrived back in the room where Anne was staying and took her away before she could find out what he had done. Katerina was left with the ravaged corpse of her husband. She did not tell Anne what Ben had done. She wasn't even sure that Ben himself knew. Her research into the area indicated that Harmonixer breakthrough is a particularly dangerous time. Yet, even if Ben was not accountable for his actions, her husband was still dead. Ben and Anne's child stayed under her roof, a potential force of destruction.  
  
Had Yuri killed his own mother while going through Harmonixer breakthrough? Katerina didn't want to consider it. She only wanted to focus on what she saw now, a fragile ten-year-old child. However, if he were a Harmonixer, he would need training with weapons. She stood up and walked over to the ladder leading to the basement, and climbed down it.  
  
Once in the basement, she opened the box with 'Old Stuff' written on it. After much searching, tossing of random junk and swearing, Katerina found what she was looking for, a miniature set of hand claws.  
  
Yuri looked at her blankly when she gave him the claws. "What are these for Auntie?" he asked bewildered.  
  
"Just go down to Josef Jasinksi and tell him that I said you need to know how to use these." Yuri continued to look at her, then shrugged.  
  
"Okay!" he said, then ran off.  
  
Josef Jasinksi examined the boy in front of him. Katerina Milovich had sent him asking him to train the boy but he knew who the boy was. He was that murderer Hyuga's boy. But Katerina had asked him to do what he could, so he would. However, the boy would need some specialist training. He was just a swordsman, and it was obvious that this boy would never wield a sword. His build, while wrong for swinging a sword, would be perfect for martial arts. It was just his luck that an expert in martial arts lived in the nearby forest. Whether he would train the boy was another story. If not, Josef knew enough about fighting with his fists to teach the boy a little.  
  
"Well Master Yuri, what would you like to do? I can teach you the little I know about using those claws, or you can go to an actual martial artist. Which do you want?" Yuri looked up shyly and said "Daddy has taught me how to use these, but can I still learn from you?" Josef shrugged.  
  
"I don't mind. Maybe I can show you things that your daddy didn't get time to. Are you sure you want to learn from me?" Yuri looked at him with big brown eyes, pleading that he be allowed to stay here, to learn closer to home. Josef was not immune to the plea.  
  
"I assume from the silence that you would like to learn from me. Well then, put on those claws, and I'll see what I can teach you"  
  
Authors Note: Thanks Miffy and Nat for the reviews! I wasn't sure if my story was any good, but my confidence has been restored! I know that this chapter is shorter then the previous one, but the next one will be longer!  
  
Nights Mistress 


	3. The Darkness of the Soul

In addition to his martial arts training, Yuri began lessons at the local school. He quickly became friends with Sasha and his cousin Clara, who had recently moved from Germany. The three rapidly became notorious for their ability to cause trouble but not be found at the scene of the crime.  
  
The three, currently hiding from the fallout from their last prank, were perched precariously in a tree, eating their spoils, a freshly cooked apple pie.  
  
"Hey Clara," Yuri began. "Yeah Yuri?" she replied.  
  
"When we grow up, do you want to marry me?" he asked in the seriousness that only a ten year old could muster. She looked at him and giggled.  
  
"'Kay! Just we have to wait until we're older, like.." Clara paused as she thought of a suitably old age. "14. That's plenty old." Sasha looked at his cousin.  
  
"What about me?" Clara considered the question.  
  
"I know! You can marry Hilda!" Sasha shuddered, then glared at her.  
  
"She's got cooties! I'm not marrying her!" Clara sniffed and looked down her snub nose at Sasha.  
  
"That's mean! I don't like you Sasha!" And with that Clara slid down the tree. She stared up into the branches at the two boys. "I'm going home now. See ya!" Clara disappeared from sight. The boys looked at each other, then Yuri pulled a snake from his pocket.  
  
"Check it out. Isn't it cool? Auntie Katerina says that it won't bite or nothing." Sasha examined the snake.  
  
"Cool!" he commented in appropriately awestruck tones. A sly grin crossed his face, but Yuri didn't notice. He did, however, notice the mud that slid down his shirt. Yuri spun around.and fell out of the tree.  
  
"Yuri! Are you all right?" Sasha called as he slid down the tree. Yuri opened his eyes, which had closed from the impact.  
  
"Yeah! Where did you get the mud from anyway? We were up a tree!" Yuri demanded. Sasha looked at his feet, and then glanced up to Yuri's scowling face.  
  
"I, um, put some in a container when Mrs Rostivok stopped chasing us with the frying pan. Thought it could be useful." Sasha looked down at his feet again, then shot his head up when something wet and squishy hit his face. His hand reached up to his face and touched the substance, which had a remarkable resemblance to mud. He wiped it off and attempted to glare at Yuri, only to find that he was gone.  
  
"You'd better watch out!" Sasha screamed, then ran after him, tackling him to the ground in an unexpected mud puddle. A bout of mud wrestling followed halted only by Sasha's gasp.  
  
"What?!" Yuri demanded, looking somewhat worse for wear. Sasha looked at him, his appearance just as bad as Yuri's.  
  
"It's Mum's birthday and I forgot! She's gonna kill me!" Sasha dragged himself from the mud and tried to wipe as much mud off as possible. All he succeeded in doing was to smear mud all over himself and splatter Yuri with the excess mud. Before Yuri could retaliate however, Sasha disappeared into the forest, heading back to his house.  
  
Yuri shrugged, which dislodged a fair amount of mud, and commented, "Guess I should head back too." He did not smear the mud around, having learnt from Sasha's example, instead washing the mud off in the creek on the way home.  
  
The next two was spent in the same manner. Clara would think of the devious plan, while Yuri and Sasha would actually execute it. While to an outsider it may sound unfair, to the Troublesome Trio, as they became to be known as, it seemed perfect. Yuri and Sasha were incapable of strategising, while Clara would freeze in action.  
  
This all changed a week after Yuri's thirteenth birthday. Clara had been acting strangely of late, having recurring nightmares and refusing to speak. Her understandably concerned parents asked to speak to Yuri and Sasha.  
  
"Hello Alexander and Yuri," Clara's father said gravely. "Clara's mother and I were wondering if you knew anything about Clara's behaviour." The two boys shook their heads. "Are you sure? Have you seen anything? Anyone strange?" They shook their heads again. "Okay. I'm sorry to worry you two. You seem like nice boys. Run along now."  
  
Once outside, Sasha turned to Yuri. "What was that all about?" Yuri shrugged.  
  
"Dunno." He meant to continue, but Katerina called him over to tell him off about neglecting his chores. Sasha, not wishing to be found by his mother because he too had not milked the cow, disappeared into the forest.  
  
That night Yuri was plagued with a strange dream. Clara stood in a graveyard the graveyard. She screamed and souls escaped from her mouth, spilling in all directions. She turned and looked directly at Yuri. "Harmonixer! Accept your destiny! Drink these souls!" She screamed at him, and gestured with her hand. The souls congregated into a large entity and sped toward him. Yuri began to run, but his feet seemed glued to the ground. If he could only reach the gate, he could wake up, escape from the demon that Clara had become. He moved slowly, as though running through sand and his fingers brushed the gate. However, a touch of frost landed on his shoulder. The souls had caught him. He screamed as they entered him. He closed his eyes and waited for his destruction.  
  
His eyes flew open. Breath ragged, Yuri looked around the room. Lit by candlelight, the familiar objects inside his room reminded him that his dream was just that, a dream. Yet it seemed real, but what was Clara doing in the Graveyard of the Harmonixers? Yuri peeled the sweat-soaked sheets from his trembling body, and then began searching for the book about Harmonixing. Katerina thought she still had it, but he had taken it back last summer as a dare. 'A oddly prophetic action,' he thought dryly. He flicked through the book, but found nothing immediately useful.  
  
"She's a Soul Well" Death Emperor commented at the back of his mind.  
  
"A what?" Yuri asked aloud. "And what are you doing? I thought you'd gone!" Death Emperor chuckled.  
  
"How can I go anywhere? I'm part of your soul, remember?" Yuri remembered all too well. "However, before you lose your sanity again, let me tell you this. Your friend is a Soul Well, one who is empathic toward the dead. It's a rare gift." Yuri nodded, then asked, "How come she was in the Graveyard? I thought only Harmonixers go there."  
  
"A Soul Well normally doesn't. She's being driven mad by the souls screaming for the darkness to leave. In case your insignificant mind is unable to grasp what that means, you're killing her. Like your mother, the girl will die thanks to your soul's taint."  
  
Yuri stood up. "I'll leave now! Maybe if I leave, she'll get better." He was about to leave when a gut wrenching scream rung out into the night.  
  
"Too late. Oh, and by the way, I'd recommend that you start running." Death Emperor retreated again. "What? Why?" Yuri asked, then received his answer. A duet of screams rang out, Clara's mother and father. Their song of terror was cut short abruptly. Their house then exploded and a luminescent entity moved into the street, searching for those still alive.  
  
Yuri stood at the window, frozen by what he saw. "Run damn you! Run!" Yuri ignored the voice. "Maybe," he whispered, "It might be better if I died here with Sasha, Clara and.." his voice stuttered to a halt. "Auntie Katerina"  
  
"Don't wallow in your self-pity boy! Move!"  
  
"No." Defiance emanating from every pore, Yuri was determined to die with his family, like he should have when his mother died.  
  
"Fine. You may want to die, but I DON'T! You've just forfeited your body to me, boy!" Death Emperor reached into the glowing wellspring that was Yuri's talent, and brought himself forth. This action, once again, was too much for Yuri's sanity. His mind splintered, he retreated screaming wordlessly into the dark recesses of his mind.  
  
Authors Note: Hey again! I'm sick with the 'flu, bored out of my mind and desperately wanting reviews! (Yes, I'm addicted to reviews - gimme!) Thanks to all, and yes Aenea I know very well who you are. Can I read your stories yet? If you haven't already worked it out, this is probably going to be a very long story, seeing as though I haven't got up to when and why Yuri accepts that he is a harmonixer, or meets Fox Face, or even begins hunting monsters (although that is coming very soon).  
  
Nights Mistress 


	4. Reflections of Blood

A solitary individual wandered in a strange, silent area. A vulnerable child in his early teens, he walked, searching for…..he didn't know.

He looked around in the darkness. "Hello? Anyone there?" he called. No answer. He shrugged and continued walking. An oddly unemotional response for a child terrified of the dark, but he was…numb, for lack of a better word. As if all emotion had been scooped out, leaving a hollow shell.

A sharp, crystalline noise sounded under his feet, cutting into his foot. He stopped and examined the glass shard. It was part of a mirror, remarkable only in that it was here, where-ever here was. He picked it up and put it is his pocket on a whim. He continued walking into the gloom. He saw a light, diffused with distance and headed toward it.

As he continued to walk, he kept stepping on shards of mirror. His feet were cut to ribbons. He was leaving a trail like a demented Hansel and Gretel, but he ignored the pain. Or couldn't feel it. He wasn't sure which. He knew on an intellectual level that he should be crying out with the pain, be unable to walk. Yet he felt nothing. Eventually he arrived at the light source, where he was greeted with a mirror frame. The glass was missing, with the exception of a shard about the size of his palm.

On an impulse he reached into his pocket and grasped the glass shard, slicing open his palm. He placed it next to the other shard, where it was cemented by his blood.

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Long slender fingers smeared with blood….fingernails filled with gore…the smell of death overwhelming….

The boy gasped and fell to his knees. The images frightened him, though he didn't know why. Yet he felt compelled to find another shard of mirror, see what the glass would reveal. He had found what he was looking for, but what was it?

With these images, his nerves in his feet awoke, screaming their agony to his brain. He screamed too, the sound as lacerated as his feet. He fell onto his face and slipped from the world.

Unsusprisingly, the pain awoke him. Pupils dialated, he breathed in short gasps. He began to whimper in pain.

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"How can you be my son? None of my blood was ever this weak!"

The boy's head spun around. "Who's there?" he cried. 

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"What? Don't remember me? You will soon. If you get enough shards that is. Although, I think it's more fun when I break them, don't you?"

Galvanised into action, the boy tore his shirt into strips and bound his feet with them. While this did nothing for the pain, it prevented more lacerations. He staggered throughout the darkness, collecting shards, cutting his fingers in his haste. The silence was only interrupted by a shattering of glass. After collecting as many shards as he could, he limped back to the mirror frame. He pulled the shards from his pocket and attached them to the mirror.

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Playing with mum and dad….dad going away every year…..mum lying dead, I KILLED HER!!!…dad? Where are you dad?….running in snow……the graveyard….Death Emperor…..stealing pies….wrestling Sasha…..Clara, I KILLED HER TOO!….

The boy looked into the mirror which was incomplete. A fusion of Japanese and Russian heritage stared back at him, or at least as much as he could see. Long fingers reached out to the gaps in the glass, smearing them with his blood.

"My name is….." the boy paused, savoured the words then continued. "Yuri Hyuga! I have a name! I am real!"

__

"As real as I," replied a voice of a similar timbre. A figure of average height materialised, wearing the coat of a Japanese colonel, his features disguised by a fox mask. Yuri froze in horror, unable to run. The figure laughed and made one graceful gesture with one hand, petrifiying him. Literally. He then shook his head in disgust. _"Well, aren't you a sorry end to the Hyuga line!" _He gestured toward the mirror. _"Like my handiwork? The sound of glass splintering, exquisite! Almost as exquisite as that young Soul Well. I did enjoy tormenting her, driving her to insanity. Did you wonder why your fusion ran? An insane Soul Well dies, torn apart by their captured spirits."_ Yuri gasped, the only action available to him.

__

"Shocked now? It gets worse. The souls do not escape from the Soul Well after death. Instead the Soul Well uses them as a magnet for other souls, pulling them from living bodies, which then explode. Not a nice death. The souls can never leave, can never plead their case at the Pearly Gates. In essence, they are damned. I'll be leaving now, so enjoy yourself! Just remember, your little friend will think of you as her murderer, so I would not recommend returning. It's your choice." Fox-Face, as Yuri christened him in his mind, threw a Soul Benediction on him, then dematerialised. 

Yuri turned back to the mirror and placed his hand upon the glass. It slipped through. Startled, Yuri tried to pull it back, but was pulled into the mirror. 

Here he was greeted by a stranger sight then a teleporting figure with a penchant for festival masks. The world seemed to be made of twisted glass pillars, seemingly melted by an extreme heat. The walls and floor were slick, as Yuri discovered when he slipped onto his butt. He picked himself up gingerly, then walked cautiously through the passageways created by the pillars. At the end of the corridors, he saw a wellspring of fluorescent water. Yuri reached into the wellspring, scooped some water into his cupped hands and drank. The world began to spin, and yet again Yuri fell on his face unconscious.

He opened his eyes to light. Real actual sunlight. Yuri would have cried if he wasn't so tired. He looked at his hands. No cuts. Yuri didn't comment. Would have taken too much effort. His head fell back down onto the ground.

__

I can sleep, just for a while, surely….NO! I can't just sleep here! I don't want to die just yet! Yuri dragged himself onto his hands and knees and crawled into the snow.

After about 10 minutes he stopped. He was unable to crawl any further and collapsed into the snow. Snowflakes fell onto his unfeeling form, melting on contact. Death Emperor made a desperate grasp for the wellspring of Yuri's power, but could not surface. Eventually he too stopped thinking.

Authors Note: I'm well aware that I can't leave Yuri in the snow, but how does he get out of this situation? Wait until next chapter and find out!(Evil Maniacal laugh, spoiled only by the wheeze and coughing fit, stupid 'flu!)The next chapter will be a little while, I'll probably post it on the 12th November. Sorry, but my finals are between now and there. After that…I've FINISHED!!!!!!!! No more school for this writer!!! 12 years of school completed!!! J 

Oh yeah, thanks for the reviews, and if someone wants a job as beta reader, let me know!


	5. The Torment of Laughter

Yuri's eyes flickered open and he gazed dispassionately around his new surroundings. It appeared that he was in a cage of some description and his hands were chained together. Unimpressed by the severity of his situation, he closed his eyes.

_"What do you think you're doing?"_ demanded Death Emperor. _"We're in a cage! Are you too stupid to know what that means?! You've been captured!"_

"And I care why?" Yuri muttered, eyes still closed. "It's not like you need to worry. After all, you always say that you can always find another Harmonixer."

If it was possible for a disembodied voice to look sheepish, Death Emperor was doing a remarkable job at it.

_"That's not _entirely_ true."_ Yuri's eyes shot open. 

"So, you're stuck with me huh? So how come?"

_"You became a Harmonixer too young. You're not supposed to be able to fight your souls at 10. And, where would I go? You're the only Hyuga around."_

Yuri thought about that statement then replied, "So, you're linked to me somehow. Or my family anyway. Like, you're attracted to my bloodline or something."

_"Very good!"_ Death Emperor commented sarcastically. _"Now, with those kind of observations, why are we in a cage?"_

"Oh shut up!" Yuri closed his eyes and fell asleep.

"Come one, come all! Ashton's Circus has come to town!" invaded Yuri's sleep. He opened his eyes, immediately closing them against the sun.

"Circus?" he asked rhetorically. Death Emperor, either not understanding the meaning of the word rhetorical, or merely ignored it commented _"Congratulations! You're the first Hyuga to be a sideshow attraction!"_

"Huh?" was Yuri's intelligent comment.

"Come see our acrobats, exotic animals, clowns! And our newest attraction…Beast Boy! Imported from the far shores of China, his innocent exterior hides a monster of unsurpassable strength! Maybe you'll be the one make him change!"

_"Beast Boy?"_ Death Emperor commented, trying to hide his mirth. Not trying very hard, but certainly making an effort. _"You're in a circus and they give you an awful name like that!"_

"Shut up!" Yuri replied. "If you hadn't noticed, he basically gave them permission to do whatever they wanted to make me change. I'm more concerned about that then what he called me."

_"Someone's grumpy this morning."_

"Stop talking to me! If anyone sees me talking back, they'll think I'm nuts!"

_"You mean instead of thinking that you're a borderline psychotic with an unfortunate habit of becoming a monster. Although I resent that name. I'm a god not a monster!"_

Yuri ignored him. Instead, he began to think of an escape plan, being oddly reluctant to be abused, mocked or whatever the gawkers wanted to do to him.

"Look mummy! It's that Beast Boy! Can I try to make him change?" a small child demanded. The mother made a non-committal noise as she fussed with her baby's wrap. The child, taking that as a yes, began to throw rocks at Yuri.

_"Come on! Let me out damn you!" _ demanded Death Emperor. 

"No!" Yuri whispered emphatically, then continued to dodge rocks. Eventually one hit him on his arm. A loud crack was heard, mixed with an agonised scream. Yuri looked at his arm in shock then at the child, tears in his eyes.

"Why?" he asked, not expecting an answer from his tormentor. He then passed out.

_"Hey! Hey…Yuri!"_ Death Emperor called. 

_"What?" _Yuri replied. _"Leave me alone!"_

_"Look, I can't. Someone's gotta set your arm, and I certainly can't do it!"_

_"Why not?" _Yuri asked curiously.

_"I just can't. Now wake up! I'll talk you through this. I don't know about you, but I don't want to possess a body with a unusable right arm."_

_"Whatever…"_ Yuri replied then tried to wake up. That was a mistake. He had forgot how painful his arm was. It didn't help that he was lying on it. He whimpered to himself.

_"Come on! Geez, it's just a broken arm! You'd think it was amputated or something!"_ Yuri didn't answer. _"Fine. I'll just take over your left arm shall I?"_ Not waiting for an answer, Death Emperor moved Yuri's left arm toward his broken right. He then placed Yuri's hand over the break, and then shoved the two parts of the bone together. Yuri screamed. Death Emperor ignored the pain, took control of Yuri's body and looked around for a straight object. His eye fell upon a stick lying just inside the cage. He reached out and grabbed it, tying it to Yuri's left arm. With that done, Death Emperor joined Yuri in unconsciousness.

Authors Note: Sorry about the delay of the chapter. Final exams conspired against me. But, I'm finished school, and will update more often!

Nights Mistress


	6. The Snap of Bones

Yuri's eyes fluttered open. Again. 

"You know, I'm really getting sick of this. Your father never did this to me. After all, I was worshipped as a god at one stage. Now look at me! Babysitting a Hyuga too stupid to survive on his own."

"Now would be a really good time to shut up you know," Yuri whispered back. "After all, if you hadn't decided to take up residence in my skull, I wouldn't be here."

_"No," _conceded Death Emperor. _"You'd be dead. And that would leave me high and dry. I need someone of the Hyuga blood to release me from that graveyard of yours. Sanity…that's another thing altogether."_

"Thanks," Yuri said dryly. "Nice to know that your friendly neighbourhood demon is watching out for you."

_"Ungrateful wretch! If you haven't noticed, your arm's been set, and we need an escape plan. Unless you like being the newest attraction at the circus."_

Yuri looked around his cage. Like the last time he looked, there weren't a lot of objects that screamed 'Escape Object.' He stood up to examine his cage more closely, took two steps and was stopped short by a length of chain. Yuri, struck by an idea, sat down and looked at his handcuffs. 

"Ah, Death Emperor, want to make yourself useful for once?" Yuri asked softly.

"And what plan does the imbecile have today? Could it be…we stand still again while people throw rocks at us again? No? Okay, what then?" Death Emperor replied sardonically.

"Your hands are smaller then mine, right? So, if I allow you to come out, you could slip the chains off my wrists, break the bars and run like hell. Am I right?" Yuri continued on, not allowing Death Emperor a chance to answer. Experience told him that leaving a gap in his soliloquy would just leave him open to scathing comments. "You and I both want the same thing; to get the hell out of here. So, I will only allow you to take over on one condition. When I tell you to leave again, you will. No questions."

"And if I don't, how do you propose to remove me?" Death Emperor asked.

"Don't you learn? I kicked you out once; I'll do it again. Trust me on that. So, do you agree?" After a few minutes of silence, Yuri leaned back into the hay, resting on one elbow, eyebrows raised.

"Fine! I will relinquish control when you say." Death Emperor said desperately. "Is that what you wanted?"

Yuri nodded, unconcerned about how stupid that looked. After all, he was never going to see these people again, so who cared?

Let's see how you do this he thought to himself. He tried to recapture the feeling he had after he sealed the mirror, the wellspring of bright, dancing amber-brown on his fingers, filling his mind. He closed his eyes and mentally reached inward. His hand skimmed over the surface, coating his fingers with the liquid.

Death Emperor, I call you forth! Nothing happened. He repeated himself, then feeling rather stupid, yelled Hey Death Emperor, you mind? Get out here now! Death Emperor sighed at the lack of showmanship in that statement, then metaphysically stepped out of the shadows.

"Right. After this, we need to have a talk." Death Emperor said wearily, shaking his head.

That we do. Yuri replied calmly. So, shall we?

To an outside observer, it appeared as though Yuri's body was engulfed in white light momentarily, then an entirely different entity was there, as if the boy had disappeared. Death Emperor blinked, and swore. It appeared as though Yuri/his partially healed left arm had just rebroken. He shrugged, then ripped the chains off his arms and legs, and then threw them down in disdain. Two quick strides, and he was at the edge of the cage, where the bars posed no barrier to an annoyed ex-god. The bending of the bars was a relatively easy task, even with a broken arm. With that done, Death Emperor followed the last aspect of their plan, the run like hell part.

Death Emperor, I want in now. Yuri called in the recesses of his skull.

"I'm busy right now. Can you wait a couple of minutes?" came a hasty reply. Yuri, annoyed at the betrayal, stuck his hands into the wellspring and concentrated. His body metamorphosed, and Yuri, in control, tumbled into the long grass. A sharp pain in his arm demonstrated that fusing with Death Emperor might be a bad idea for the moment.

"You seem to have forgotten to tell me things like my arm being rebroken a lot," Yuri ground out through his teeth.

"I was about to tell you when you took matters into your own hands."  Yuri didn't dignify this with a comment.

"Fine, I'll reset it for you. Will that make it better?" Death Emperor replied sarcastically.

"It would be a start," Yuri answered, deliberately ignoring the tone. Death Emperor took control over Yuri's right arm, and reset the left.

"Do you have any idea how much that hurts?!" demanded Yuri.

"Actually, yes. It is my arm after all. Or ours, if you want to be precise. May I recommend that we move the hell out of here, and find a deserted cave or something? I have not just escaped from the circus to be eaten by some wild animal!"

Yuri shook his head wryly. "Nice to know that you're concerned with my welfare. Fine, cave it is."

The trek through the bush was quite boring. After you've seen one tree, you've seen them all. In an attempt to occupy himself, Yuri kept a running dialogue with Death Emperor.

"You, boy, need to learn some showmanship. Yelling 'Get out here now' is not all that classy. You need something with a bit of sparkle or something."

"Riiiight. So what did previous harmonixers use then?" Yuri panted.

"'Scourge of the Dead, defeat my foes' was quite popular."

"I am not saying that! That's stupid!"

"What about 'Death of Souls, release thy fate!'"

Yuri grimaced. "That's worse. How about 'Ruler of Dead, Death Emperor!"

"Is that the best you can do? Oh well, at least it's better then 'Hey You! Now!'"

Curiosity piqued, Yuri asked, "Who said that?"

"Your great-grandmother, if you must know. She was one scary lady. Oh, and by the way, there's a cave on your left." Yuri's head whipped around, causing him to fall over. He stuck his arm out to stop his fall. Pity it was the left one. Yuri demonstrated that Death Emperor's education in the most appropriate words to assert your feelings had been well heeded.

"Are you quite finished?" Death Emperor asked sardonically.

Yuri stood up and staggered over to the cave. It was relatively small as caves go and thankfully free of stalactites and stalagmites. Those things are really unpleasant early in the mornings. It had obviously been used as shelter from the elements before, with a burnt out campfire near the entrance, and a pile of dried out wood stacked away from the wind. Yuri looked around into the gloom and said, "Cool."

"Use that word again, and I will be forced to kill you." 

Yuri shrugged. "You get that," he commented, and began to build a fire.

Ten minutes later, the fire was a roaring success. Literally. Yuri was sitting close to it, basking in the radiated heat. Gazing into the flames, he said lazily "What should we do now?"

Death Emperor shrugged. "Don't look at me. Normally, harmonixers have jobs and all by the time I come in. You're the first child I've ever had to deal with."

"I'm hardly a child," Yuri replied coolly. "Find me another child who's had to put up with as much as I have and I'll worship you."

"Anyway, you need to find yourself a job."

"I don't think a paper run will pay all that much somehow."

"Come on, you can do better then that. You're trained to fight, and have a fusion soul. Bound to no-one, no worries in the world."

"Are you suggesting that I become a monster hunter? I'm 13 for Christ's sake."

"Fourteen. Your birthday was yesterday."

Yuri blinked, mind blank. He then recovered, and replied "No-one in their right mind is going to hire a fourteen year old to hunt monsters."

"I guarantee you that someone will, once. After that, it's up to you."

Authors Note: Sorry this took so long, but was enjoying lack of assessment. Now, only 2 weeks until I find out how I went overall and whether I get into the uni course I want! J

In case you're wondering, Death Emperor is very similar to someone I know. Aenea, take a bow.


	7. The Melody of Battle

Yuri groaned as the sunlight speared his eyelids. "Morning already?" he asked, not expecting an answer.

_"Yeah, morning. It's a fairly common phenomenon. Happens every day I'm told."_ Death Emperor commented dryly. _"If you're planning to get yourself a job, actually getting out of bed could be a good idea, but don't quote me or anything."_

Yuri threw his arms over his head, unfortunately smacking himself on the head with the splint. "Ow," he said after much consideration. "Can I take the splint off yet?" he asked plaintively. Death Emperor snorted.

_"Harmonixers heal quick, true. But I'm fairly confident that broken bones don't heal overnight. Try in about two weeks."_

"Ohhhhhh," Yuri whined. "But I want it off now!"

Death Emperor shrugged.

_"Not my problem."_

"You're sympathetic." Yuri commented sarcastically. "'Spose I should get up through. Never know, might have a job calling." Death Emperor shook his head in disbelief, but wisely chose to say nothing. Yuri was not a morning person.

It didn't take much work to clean up the cave. There really wasn't a lot to do. Stack firewood, roll up blanket, and put claws on. Doesn't usually take a long time. However, Yuri decided to take some malicious pleasure in making Death Emperor wait for him. It's not like he could do anything more to him. After all, Death Emperor was currently residing in Yuri's skull, making it difficult to take revenge on him. Yuri sighed at the injustice of the world.

Eventually Yuri discovered the Pre-schoolers' Rule; No matter how long you take to do something, it will be done in the end and no temper tantrum will deny that. With Death Emperor becoming more impatient in the recesses of his brain, Yuri stepped out into the daylight. And sighed again.

"How do you propose I find a job? It's not like there are ads around that ask for 'Junior monster slayer required. Must be willing to work unusual hours and have an open mind,' unless I've missed something."

_"I grant you that there aren't any ads for monster slaying. Normally what happens is that you wander around, asking at towns whether they know of any monster trouble and emphasise that you're willing to work at a cheaper rate then the usual run of the mill slayer. And don't mention your age, unless you want to get laughed at. Although that could be quite amusing for me." _

Yuri rolled his eyes. "You can't honestly tell me that monster hunters just wander around looking for trouble! I mean really, what do you take me for?"

_"An adolescent boy with no respect for his elders and believes that he knows everything."_

"Ah, but I do."  Yuri emphasised this with an 'Aha' gesture.

Death Emperor sniggered. Yuri pouted. "What, you don't believe me? That'd be right."

_"Can we leave yet?"_

Yuri sniggered, and then started walking in a general direction. He had no real destination in mind, just wanted to keep Death Emperor quiet. Not a particularly noble aim, but certainly a practical one.

_"Do you have any idea of where you're going? The nearest town is west of here you ill-begotten wretch!"_ Death Emperor demanded. Yuri shrugged, but was saved from answering the question when a shout rang through the morning air.

"Monsters stole my baby!" a woman screamed, her shrill voice cutting the air like a knife. Yuri winced. "Wouldn't want to live with her. Imagine the fights."  Death Emperor shuddered in sympathy.

"And in answer to your question, I believe I'm going to get her baby back. It's not like you stumble on jobs every day!" Yuri grinned wickedly.

Death Emperor sighed with exasperation. _"Didn't I tell you that you do stumble over jobs? Don't you listen to anything I say?" _

"Nope!" said Yuri happily, as he ran in the general direction of the screams.

The screams came from a woman in her early thirties, who was standing inside a house. A person less diplomatic might describe it as a rundown shack. In fact those were the exact words used by Death Emperor. Yuri ignored his complaints and spoke to the woman.

"Morning Ma'am. Was in the area and heard that you needed a monster hunter. Interested?" he asked politely, or at least as politely as he was capable of, which wasn't much. Death Emperor had had a bad influence on him in regard to social interaction. The woman looked at him with a mixture of shock and disbelief.

"You're a monster hunter? You look about twelve. Go home to your mother and stop playing around. There are dangerous monsters around you know?" she finally said, her tone carrying her disbelief at Yuri's statement.

"I'm eighteen for Christ's sake! I'm well aware of the monsters, that's why I'm here. Do you want a monster hunter or not?" he demanded, getting annoyed.

_"Nice lie there,"_ Death Emperor commented quietly. Yuri ignored him and continued to glare at the woman. She stared back, and then relented.

"I want a monster hunter. Monsters took my daughter this morning. I'd hunt her down myself, but I can't fight." The woman added after a minute "I can pay, not a lot, but I can."

Yuri considered then said, "You've got yourself a deal. Name's Yuri Hyuga. Yourself?"

"Catherine," the woman replied. Yuri waited for the rest. When nothing was forthcoming, he asked, "Did the monsters leave anything behind?"

Catherine shook her head. "Scales, blood, anything at all?" he added. She shook her head again, becoming more annoyed at him. Realising this, he threw his hands into the air in the universal gesture for surrender.

"Sorry Ma'am. It's just unusual to find that the monsters have left absolutely nothing at all."

_"And you would know this how?"_ Death Emperor asked.

"I'll take a look around, see if there are any tracks or anything. I doubt that they would know to cover their tracks. After all, they are monsters, right?" Yuri commented. He then turned and walked out of the door. Once outside, he said aloud, "Would you mind not saying anything while I'm talking to someone? It's distracting!"

_"Sorry,"_ Death Emperor said, not sounding the least bit apologetic. _"If you're interested, the monsters headed into the north and are currently about five kilometres away. If you run, you might save the kid." _

"How do you know all that?" Yuri asked, curious. Not waiting for a reply, which was a good thing seeing as though Death Emperor wasn't about to give him one, Yuri headed off in a northerly direction.

After about ten minutes of running, Yuri panted "Don't you find it odd that there are no monsters here? None at all? What are the chances of that?" Death Emperor was silent for a moment.

_"I don't like it. Knowing our luck, they're either all waiting in ambush, or were all defeated by the monsters we're tracking. Neither of which is good for us."_ Death Emperor's tone was tinged with a bit of fear. __

Yuri stopped suddenly. "You're scared!" he said in disbelief. 

_"Hardly. Merely concerned for my continued existence."_

"You're dead. Remember?" 

_"I need a Hyuga. Remember. You're the last, so if you die, so do I."_

"But don't you find this exciting?"

_"No. Stupid, yes. Exciting, no."_ Death Emperor paused, and then snapped, _"Make up your mind! Either go back to that woman, or continue on! Don't stand in the middle of the forest! What are you, stupid?"_

"No, distracted." Yuri continued running. 

Finally they arrived at a clearing. It appeared as though the monsters had congregated there. Yuri asked Death Emperor "Any monsters in hiding?"

_"No,"_ said Death Emperor, puzzled. _"They're it."_

"Guess I just grab the kid and run, huh?" 

Death Emperor blurted, _"Are you kidding? They'll track you down, you stupid boy. Try using your brain for once. You're going to have to kill them all first."_

Yuri's eyes widened. "I can't kill them all! I'm only fourteen!"

_"I'll help. I remember once that I fused with you partially, took control of your right arm. I might be able to take control of everything but your left arm, and fight for you."_

Yuri was silent for a minute, and then said, "Do it."

It was an… interesting experience being only partially fused. Yuri's instincts screamed at him to either complete the fusion, or reverse it. It took all of his concentration to maintain the equilibrium. With he was being occupied, Death Emperor started to fight the monsters.

The two weaker monsters were defeated in minutes; their only talent was the ability to heal the central monster. It was this central monster that disturbed Death Emperor. Though not obviously stronger then the others, its ability to withstand Death Emperor's attacks frightened him. He continued on, eventually weakening it. However, as he did that, the monster attacked Death Emperor's left arm. Yuri screamed and reversed the fusion. He reverted in time to see the monster lunge for him. In desperation, Yuri threw his left set of claws at the monster. Luck must have been on his side that day, as they sunk into the monster's throat, slicing the jugular and killing the monster.

Yuri fell to his knees. "I killed them all. Slaughtered them like animals."

_"Oh stop with the self-pity! They were animals, remember. Get over it! And while you're at it, get the kid too."_

Yuri looked up. "True." He ripped the claws from his right hand, removed the other set from the monster's throat, and tucked them into their pouch. He then looked at the child.

"How am I supposed to carry you and still be able to fight?"

_"Why did I get stuck with the village idiot? Make a sling from your blanket and put the child in that. That should leave your arms free."_ Rather then dignify this with a comment, Yuri pulled the blanket from his backpack and tore a thick swath from it. He then tied it in a loop, hung the loop around his neck and placed the baby into the base. Pulling his claws free from the pouch was an experience in itself. Yuri had never been so scared about dropping anything in his life.

With the claws finally on, Yuri started to jog back to the shack. Thankfully, no monsters attacked him. He really didn't want to try to fight while terrified that every movement would dislodge the baby. When he arrived at the shack, he was greeted with a knife held against his throat.

"Ah, lady? You really don't want to do that," Yuri said cautiously. The knife fell away from his throat and he resumed breathing. 

"My baby? Where's my baby?" Catherine asked desperately. Yuri grinned wryly. "She's in the sling."

After checking that her baby was all right, Catherine turned back to Yuri. "What can I do to thank you?" she asked.

"Payment would be nice. Oh, and a new blanket. I wrecked my old one rescuing your kid." Yuri said dryly. Catherine nodded and walked over to a wicker basket, still holding onto her child. She pulled out a fluffy pink blanket and handed it to Yuri, who accepted it. Death Emperor shuddered. He didn't like pink. Especially pink and fluffy. Yuri also accepted a small pouch of coins from Catherine. He nodded his farewell and left.

Outside the shack, Yuri counted the coins. 

_"You rescued her child and all she gives you is 700G? That is way past cheap!"_ Death Emperor grumbled.

"Oh shut up! She's poor, isn't that obvious? And we got a blanket!" Yuri replied.

_"Don't remind me of the blanket. At least we got some money from that battle."_

"True," Yuri said.

_"Say that word again, and I will be forced to remove your vocal cords." _Death Emperor snarled, irritated beyond measure.

"You wouldn't do that," Yuri said. The silence from Death Emperor spoke volumes.

"Fine, I won't. Shall we go?" The two walked away from the shack, into the morning.

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Authors Note: Yuri's first mission!!! That was fun! In case you're wondering, there are two references to modern media in this chapter. The first is    "Monsters stole my baby!" It should be dingos instead of monsters, and it is a really sick cultural joke. The second is when Yuri does the 'I slaughtered them like animals.' I had to watch Attack of the Clones for an English assignment, and that was the second funniest scene in the whole film. I mean really, he acts like a psychopath, and all Amidala says is "I love you anyway". My favourite scene, in case you're wondering, is when Shmi dies. Now that was lame acting.

I was thinking of making this story into a series, and telling the stories of all the characters. Should I do it? Let me know!


	8. The Terror of Shopping

__

Yuri walked in the dark. Eyes wide, he started at every sound. He didn't know why he was so scared. Nothing had happened; all he was doing was walking.

"Enjoying yourself, boy?" a resonant voice asked. Yuri spun around, searching.

"Where are you? Show yourself!" he demanded shrilly. His only response was a mocking laugh. The darkness faded to grey and Yuri was able to see who his mocker was.

Medium height, the man wore a coat that Yuri had seen the Japanese soldiers wear. A fox mask hid his features and he was armed with a set of hand claws. 

"Don't remember your own father? Then again, you don't remember a lot, do you?" Yuri's jaw dropped.

"What did happen to your mother? Do you even remember that?" Yuri was incapable of speech. His father stepped toward him. Yuri stepped backward.

"Do you remember anything?" his father demanded, waving his claws at Yuri, who prudently took another step backward.

"Let me give you a clue, your hands are washed in blood. Oh, and mind the edge." Yuri stepped back again and his foot fell on air. He fell backward.

He scrabbled against the cliff face, desperately searching for something that would halt his fall. He tore his fingernails on a rock, leaving a wet trail of his descent.

He hit the water. As his head slipped under, he swallowed a mouthful. It tasted coppery. As his head broke the surface of the water momentarily, he noticed that it was red, the intensity of the colour decreasing as its distance from him increased. He slipped under the water again. He couldn't find the surface. He desperately clawed the water, searching for the light. His lungs burned from lack of air. Finally, he opened his mouth and breathed water. The world began to disappear. He closed his eyes and waited to die.

Yuri shot bolt upright, the air reverberating with the echoes of his scream. His wide brown eyes searched his surroundings, grounding him in reality. He was in a hotel, obviously a cheap one judging by the décor. As his heart rate slowed, a persistent rapping on the door got his attention.

"Mind keeping it down in there?! The rest of us want to sleep!" an irate voice shouted.

"Sorry!" Yuri shouted back. A distant part of his mind congratulated him on keeping it steady. 

"Inconsiderate wretch," the voice grumbled as it faded.

Yuri waited until he could no longer hear the person's footsteps, then asked Death Emperor "What was that?"

__

"That would be an annoyed person coming to tell you off." Death Emperor replied. 

"I meant the dream. "

__

"Like I'd know. I didn't even see it, remember? I am not you, merely an unfortunate observer."

"I saw my father, I think. He was taunting me. Then I fell off a cliff and drowned in a sea of blood," Yuri said softly, voice still shaking slightly.

__

"And you know what? I really don't care. Except, what do you mean, you think? Either you saw your father or not. Anyway, I'm not about to go analyse the dreams of some adolescent. Can we get out of here?"

Yuri shook himself, trying to shake of the memory of the dream. "Yeah, whatever," he replied absently. As his brain woke up, he asked, "Where are we going anyway?"

__

"I heard Moscow is nice at this time of year." Death Emperor hinted.

"I don't think so." Yuri replied shortly. "I want to keep all my money, thank you very much." He pulled himself out of bed and pulled his clothes on. He was surprised to notice that they were too small.

"I've grown!" he said in tones of amazement.

__

"That normally happens. Its called puberty. Next is the fun of your voice changing. That is always entertaining." Death Emperor replied in amusement. Yuri was too excited to listen to Death Emperor.

"'Spose I should buy some new clothes," Yuri said softly.

That day, Yuri learnt of a whole new horror, greater then when his mother died. He went clothes shopping with Death Emperor. Now clothes's shopping is scary at the best of times. When you have a perpetually sarcastic voice in your head, it takes terror to a new level.

The press of people in the stores scared Yuri and he was constantly fighting elbows, knees and the irresistible urge to pull his claws out of their pouch and clear himself a path. Finally he fought his way to the counter.

"Um…excuse me, sir?" Yuri asked nervously.

"What? Young man, speak up!" the man behind the counter commanded.

"I….need to buy some clothes. Do you have any?" Yuri asked, slightly louder then before.

__

"No, clothing shops normally don't sell clothes. What are you thinking?" Death Emperor commented in his mind, reflecting the thoughts of the shop assistant.

"In your size? I suppose that I have something," the shop assistant said. He turned around and searched through haphazardly packed drawers. He made a Aha noise and pulled out a trenchcoat, shoes, pants and a shirt. 

"Here we are. Anything take your fancy?" the shop assistant said. Yuri looked at the clothes with wide eyes. Shopping was bad enough, but making aesthetic decisions? 

"I'll take them," Yuri said quietly, inwardly proud that his voice didn't shake. The shop assistant blinked in surprise and said "That'll be 1300G thank you." Yuri handed over the money, grabbed the package and ran out of the store. Once he was in the street, Yuri stopped.

"Did I overreact?" Yuri asked.

__

"Oh no, people normally run away from stores. Happens all the time I'm sure." Death Emperor replied sarcastically. _"Of course you overreacted. Now go back to the hotel, get changed and leave before everyone starts to wonder about you."_

"Huh?" Yuri asked, confused.

__

"A teenaged boy with no relatives comes into a hotel in the dead of night and keeps the other occupants awake by screaming half the night. The next day he runs from a shop. No, that's not drawing attention to yourself." Death Emperor berated. He continued. _"Anyway, I heard that there's a haunted castle near here. Wanna check it out?"_

"Do you have to ask?" Yuri asked. They headed out of town, toward the haunted castle.

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Authors Note: Sorry about the lateness and crappiness of this chapter. I got writer's block, and spent ages looking at a flashing cursor. Very hypnotising, if you want to know. Anyway, the next chapter should be good.

Nights Mistress


	9. The Usefulness of Talent

"Remind me again. Why did I think wandering through a deserted castle at night was a good idea? And a reportedly haunted one at that?" Yuri complained.  He was not in a good mood. 

After they left that village, (Yuri suspected that it didn't even deserve a name), they had walked for literally hours. Unfortunately, while he became exhausted, Death Emperor became more animated about the castle and it's possible ghosts. While they were initially interesting, Yuri really was sick of the sixteenth rendition of the hauntings. 

When the castle began to loom on the horizon, Yuri breathed a sigh of relief. It was not until he had been walking for another hour that he realised how big the castle actually was. As a result, they had arrived at the castle about an hour after sunset.

_"Well? Are you going in or not?" Death Emperor had demanded while Yuri stood at the base of the castle and stared up, up, up to the battlements._

"Isn't it haunted? I don't think so!" Yuri retorted. He shuddered at the thought.

_"Here's your options. Either you go inside a building, away from marauding monsters, or stay outside and get eaten by aforementioned monsters. Take your pick." Death Emperor replied. He was barracking on Yuri deciding to go inside the castle. His opinion was confirmed._

"Fine, the castle it is. I haven't heard of anyone actually dying from ghost attack yet," Yuri decided. He shook his head suddenly when he had a vague recollection of a whole town dying in such a manner. He shrugged it off as mere fancy and started to scale the castle walls.

Yuri reconsidered his choice when he was in the castle proper. The total absence of light meant that there was much squealing as he walked into spider webs. 

_"There's a set of matches in your backpack. Grab a stick and make a torch you stupid boy!" Death Emperor said, getting sick of Yuri's squealing. Yuri scowled, but fumbled in his backpack until his fingers landed on a small box. Grasping that box in his left hand, he felt around in the dark until he found a stick. Lighting a match, he placed the fire near the stick, and was pleased when it lit._

Using this to light his way, Yuri began to search the castle for somewhere where he could rest. Unfortunately he was unsuccessful, and Death Emperor was oddly silent.

_"AAAAAAARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!" screamed Death Emperor suddenly. Yuri jumped and spun around, searching for the cause of Death Emperor's terror. It was not until he heard Death Emperor snicker that he realised that Death Emperor was messing with him._

"Not funny," he said vehemently. Death Emperor's response was to start laughing uncontrollably. Yuri glared into the darkness and promised to himself that if he ever had a chance to hit Death Emperor, well he wouldn't stop there.

Death Emperor continued to amuse himself in that manner for another fifteen minutes. Yuri, on the other hand, was not amused. Finally, his patience wore thin.

"Would you just SHUT UP!!!" he screamed. 

"Who, me?" called a feminine voice. Yuri jumped. Death Emperor sniggered. He turned around slowly, brand in one hand. Moving toward him was a silhouette, the flickering flame ensuring that making out any more details was a futile exercise. It stopped in front of him.

"Were you talking to me?" the shadow asked curiously. Yuri shook his head dumbly. "If you weren't, who were you talking to?" 

"No-one," Yuri stammered. "I mean, I keep hearing things. Like ghosts or something." The girl laughed. 

"I haven't found any ghosts yet, and I've been searching for hours. And you keep hearing them. Trust my luck!" she said ruefully. "Well, guess I should borrow you then. Name's Juliet. I'm an exorcist."

_"Evidently, not a very good one, if she can't find the ghosts." Death Emperor commented. Yuri scowled._

"I've got a safe-place about two floors up. We should go up there and collaborate," she suggested. Yuri nodded in agreement and began to follow Juliet.

Once in the safe-place, Yuri's eyes widened. His pupils shrank to mere pinpoints as he was blinded. Either Juliet was a really bad exorcist or he had really good spectral vision, because her safe-place was literally filled with ghosts. He was choking on them.

Apparently he was literally choking, because Juliet was hitting him repeatedly on the back. He raggedly drew a breath.

"What happened?" Juliet asked anxiously, her face illuminated by the brand. Distantly, Yuri took note of her features, auburn hair, green eyes and a ski-jump nose, but a larger part of him was quaking at the sheer number of ghosts in the room.

"Can't you see them?" he asked, voice shaking. 

"See what?" she asked.

"The ghosts! They're right here!" Yuri gasped. He could hear his heart beat pounding in his ears, his breath rasping through his throat. 

_"She can't see them. She hasn't got the Sight. What the hell does she think she's doing if she can't See them!" Death Emperor asked incredulously._

Yuri suddenly felt an impact on his face. Shocked, he looked at Juliet as he snaked a hand to feel the damage. 

"You were hysterical," she offered in way of apology. "There aren't any ghosts here, I made sure of that." Yuri shook his head. When she hit him, he lost his spectral vision. He saw no one else in the room but Juliet.

"I can't see them now, but they were there! Can't you See them?" Yuri asked, dreading the answer. Juliet shook her head.

"Church said that if my faith was strong enough, I wouldn't need to see," she said. "So I blessed the room and the ghosts should have gone. Are you saying otherwise?" Yuri nodded.

_"If her faith was strong enough? In what, exactly? I have faith that she'll be dead tomorrow. Blessing a room doesn't scare ghosts, it attracts them! Does she not know anything?" Death Emperor ranted. __"She needs to perform an exorcism!"_

"Do you know how to perform an exorcism?" Yuri asked abruptly. Juliet blinked, then shook her head. 

"I'm still an apprentice. I don't learn that 'til next year, I think," she replied. "Why?"

_"Great, just great. She's an apprentice exorcist, that hasn't learnt how to exorcise ghosts." Death Emperor grumbled. __"That used to be the first thing exorcists learnt. Youth these days!"_

"How do you know so much about exorcists anyway?" Yuri subvocalised. Juliet looked at him strangely.

"Are you possessed? Cause if you are, I can solve that!" she said cheerily. Yuri shuddered.

"I'm not possessed and if I were, I wouldn't have answered, would I?" he said allowed. Mentally he continued. _'And I wouldn't let you do anything about it either.'_

_"I'm touched," Death Emperor commented. __"In case you're wondering, your great, great-uncle was an exorcist before he became a harmonixer." Yuri blinked, then his eyes widened again. The ghosts were back, except it appeared that they had brought all their friends too. He reached across and grabbed Juliet's hand._

"You've got to get out of here. Hell, we've got to get out of here!" he said urgently, nervous eyes staring over her shoulder toward the ghosts.

"Why?" she asked, oblivious to his frightened stare. Yuri didn't reply, just roughly pulled her upright.

"Hey!" she protested. "What's the deal?" Yuri started to run, pulling her behind him. 

"Come **on!" he growled as he pulled her closer to the stair well. He stopped abruptly. Juliet had stopped and was glaring at him. **

"I have no idea what the hell you think you're doing, but I am not participating in your delusions!" she said harshly. "I'm not moving!" She crossed her arms. In Yuri's imagination, she was frowning, glaring at him under her brows. The ghosts loomed closer. Yuri looked around wildly. His frantic gaze was attracted to a large window on his left. He shrugged and, still holding Juliet's wrist, jumped through the window.

_"Yuri, wake up, damn you! Do you want to die here or what?" Death Emperor demanded. Yuri groaned, winced when that made his head hurt more, and opened his eyes. The ghosts were streaming out of the window, and heading toward them. He leapt to his feet, headache forgotten. Juliet was sitting on the ground near his feet. Part of him noticed the pool of blood on the ground, but he dismissed it as unimportant. He could worry about that later._

"You….jerk!!" she screamed. Yuri, sick of her histrionics snapped, "Whatever. If you want to die, stay here! I'm leaving!" He started running. Actually limping would be a better term. Juliet, seething with frustration, clambered to her feet and ran after him.

_"You can stop running now." Death Emperor offered. __"The ghosts can't leave the boundaries." _

Yuri, broken from his trance, stopped. And fell to his knees, the concussion and blood loss finally catching up to him. The world began to loop in sickening circles and Yuri fell flat on his face. 

"You can stop joking now!" Juliet said angrily. The world went dark.

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Authors Note: I'm not quite sure what to do with Juliet. Might keep her around, don't know yet. Any suggestions? I've also had a suggestion to tell Death Emperor's story, with DE as the narrator. Any suggestions on that one too?

I am enjoying this. Thanks for all the reviews! And, if you're not demanding a section for Shadow Hearts from ff.net every time that you're online, you're not doing it enough!

Nights Mistress


	10. Exorcism can be a bitch

Yuri opened his eyes, slowly. Something told him that opening them quickly would be a bad idea. In fact, opening them at all was a bad idea. Yuri winced at the light and closed his eyes. He reopened them when he realised that his wrists and ankles were chained together. Again. Yuri sighed.

_"Took your time, didn't you?" Death Emperor said acerbically.  __"In case you're wondering, your useless exorcist called for help from the nearest church. Seems that they 'trained' her." Death Emperor's tone suggested that 'train' would not have been the word he would use to describe what the church had done. _

"Yuri I take it?" a man's voice asked from behind him. Yuri turned his head to the noise. 

"My name is Father Cassiel. Juliet tells me that you exhibited some behaviours that we of the Faith call possession. After observing you, I'm inclined to agree."

_"Pompous ass, isn't he? That girl couldn't even tell you if it was sunny or not!" Death Emperor commented. Yuri repressed the impulse to giggle. He was inclined to agree with Death Emperor. Juliet was quite hopeless at the whole exorcism business and that Cassiel guy just gave him the creeps._

Yuri's opinion of Cassiel was well deserved.

"We began the exorcism process immediately after we realised, and soon you will be free of your demon possessor - Praise be to God!" the Father continued fervently. Yuri rolled his eyes. This was becoming tedious and he was getting hungry.

"Excuse me Father, but I haven't eaten since Wednesday. Is food out of the question?" Yuri asked tersely. To a fourteen-year-old boy, there is nothing worse then some boring old person interrupting valuable eating time.

"I'm sorry my child, but part of the process is that you must fast," Cassiel said apologetically. "Rest assured, the ceremony is only four days away!" 

"I don't think you're _my father. I'm not a whore's get," Yuri replied. He smiled sweetly._

_"Idiot!" Death Emperor shouted. __"Very true, but you shouldn't have said it! That'll only make this harder!" Death Emperor broke off suddenly as Father Cassiel backhanded Yuri._

"Foul demon, I will force you to leave this innocent soul!" he spat and walked away. Yuri waited until he could no longer hear Cassiel's footsteps then whispered, "What do you mean?"

_"Now that you've shown that you're unwilling for the rite, he will use force to supposedly weaken the control your so-called demon has on you, namely me. You idiot!" Death Emperor said angrily. Before Yuri could reply, Cassiel returned, holding a whip with nine tails on the end._

"I'm sorry, Yuri. It's for your own good," Father Cassiel said apologetically then swung the whip back and flicked the ends into Yuri's back. Nine leather straps, each ended with a metal ball bearing, ripped open the skin. Yuri gasped. The only thing Cassiel said was, "One."

This torment went on for either an eternity, or an instant. Yuri had no sense of time. He distantly heard Cassiel say "Ten," but ignored it as inconsequential. The flaying paused, and Yuri hoped desperately that Cassiel wouldn't start the pain again. His hope was in vain when Cassiel sprinkled a powder on his back. When the powder encountered raw or bleeding flesh, it burned. His back a mass of agony, Yuri passed out.

The next four days were spent in a similar manner. Cassiel required no provocation to whip Yuri, convinced that inflicting the cat of nine tails on him was eventually benefiting his soul. Yuri wasn't convinced. In fact, Yuri was barely conscious, which was probably a good thing. He would rouse occasionally to Death Emperor's increasing desperate shouts, and then pass out again.

_"Yuri, they're beginning! Yuri, wake up!" Death Emperor screamed, knowing it was futile. Yuri hadn't responded to him in over a day and quite frankly, Death Emperor was worried._

"Our Lord, our Savior, protect this child from Evil. Through no wrongdoing of his own, a foul demon has possessed him. Exorcise him, oh Lord and preserve his immortal soul!" Father Cassiel shouted. Death Emperor really didn't like him now. However, Yuri might be lucky, this guy probably had no idea what he was doing. Maybe.

Death Emperor's hopes were dashed when Cassiel's eyes rolled into his head and he shouted some phrase in Latin. Death Emperor felt his hold on Yuri slip, and then fall away completely.

Father Cassiel looked in satisfaction at the limp Yuri. He had saved another soul from the lures of the Eternal Enemy. He turned to walk away, but was tapped on the shoulder. He spun around and was greeted by Death Emperor, one very annoyed ex-god. Cassiel only had time to register this before Death Emperor ripped him apart.  

Juliet gasped, betraying her position. Death Emperor dissolved, and then reappeared in front of her. She met the same fate as late Father Cassiel. Death Emperor's rage was not sated though. He drew on power that he had last experienced centuries before and released it explosively. The church started to collapse.

A glimmer of reason invaded Death Emperor's brain. He apparated in front of Yuri and picked him up. Yuri's head lolled on his shoulder. Death Emperor's rage was ignited again, but controlled himself. If the last Hyuga should die….he didn't finish that thought. The two disappeared.

They reappeared in the forest about 5 kilometres from the church. Death Emperor put Yuri down gently. He then rummaged desperately through Yuri's backpack. He pulled out all of Yuri's thera roots and shoved them down his throat. Some colour returned to Yuri's face and his breathing became easier. 

Relieved, Death Emperor properly looked at Yuri for the first time. He shook his head. Yuri looked so young from the outside. Too young. A twisted smile crossed Death Emperor's face.

"Feeling sorry for the boy?" he asked himself sardonically. "You sad bastard. Wake him up. If he doesn't accept you again soon…" Death Emperor shuddered at that thought. He had no intention of becoming a powerless wraith.  Whatever his reasons for his sentiment, Death Emperor shook Yuri awake. He opened his eyelids slowly, gaze hazy and unfocused.

"Whatre doin?" Yuri slurred. "I c'n s'you. Shouldn't." 

"Yuri, you have to touch me, and your power at the same time. Can you do that?" Death Emperor asked softly. Yuri shook his head.

"Hurts…" he complained. Death Emperor resisted the urge to sigh in frustration.

"I know it does. But if you do this quickly, it won't hurt anymore," he coaxed. An intense look on concentration crossed Yuri's face. Death Emperor took this as a good sign. Yuri extended his hand and grabbed Death Emperor by the wrist. A familiar feeling of being absorbed was the last thing Death Emperor felt externally, and then he was back in Yuri's mind. Frowning, he began the work that would get Yuri well enough to get help. Hopefully. Death Emperor was not optimistic, but was resolved.

Authors Note: In response to Greyfriers-Spirit (I can't spell to save myself), there is in fact a Mary Sue….sort of. If I understand it correctly, a Mary Sue is a desperate attempt by a female writer to try and score with a fictional character by inserting herself in a story. If that is the case, then Yuri is a modified Mary Sue. What can I say? I like being sardonic, rude and bad tempered. It's more fun then being nice. I have no intention of trying to score with any of my characters though!

Yes this chapter is much darker then the recent ones. That's probably going to continue….when necessary. And the relationship between Yuri and Death Emperor is a sort of twisted father-child thing. I spent ages trying to establish that, so tell me if it's ok. Don't worry, DE will be his usual abrasive self in the next chapter though!

Nights Mistress


	11. Rage Against the Dying of the Light

__

Yuri looked around blindly. He started to walk forward, his footsteps swallowed by the darkness. A cold wind blew through his hair and he shivered. 

"Oh, look at the Harmonixer. He's all alone," a voice taunted. Yuri didn't turn around, didn't want to give the voice the satisfaction of knowing that it had startled him.

"He's all alone. Eaten by the darkness," a mournful voice called. Yuri ignored the voice and continued to walk forward. He didn't know what he was searching for, only that to stop was to die.

"Every thing is born alone and will die alone. It is pointless to rage against the dying of the light."

"Whether you scream your name into the world or shrink into the shadows, you will fade into the darkness."

"Sanity is a thin line, Harmonixer, the edge of a knife. Stray but a little and all is gone. Why not give up the struggle now?"

The voices dissolved into a cacophonous babble, the words slurring together to form meaningless sounds. Yuri clapped his hands over his ears, trying uselessly to drown out the noise.

"Shut up!" a shrill voice screamed, cutting through the voices like a scalpel. It took Yuri a minute to realise that the voice was his own. He dragged his hands down by his sides, hands clamped into fists as he stared wide-eyed into the darkness.

"Bravo," a familiar voice commented from behind him, clapping his hands in mock admiration. Yuri turned around slowly.

"Hello," he replied coldly. "Who the hell are you, really?" The man looked shocked, or at least as shocked as you can be while wearing a fox mask.

"Don't recognise your own father? Ungrateful wretch. I can't believe that I wasted my time on you. I should have drowned you at birth," the man replied nonchalently. Yuri turned his back on the man and started to walk away.

"If you're my father, why didn't I like you going away every year?" he tossed over his shoulder.

"Because it meant that your mother would be left alone," was the immediate reply. Yuri stopped and whirled around.

"How do you know that?" he whispered. The man shrugged.

"I remember the conversation. You were about ten," he replied. "You lied to me then. You didn't want me to leave you. Scared of your shadow, weren't you?" He paused for a minute and examined Yuri with his eyes. "You still are."

"I am not!" was Yuri's quick reply.

"Oh?" the man asked. "I know what you are afraid of, Yuri. I know that you cling to sanity with desperate fingertips, ripping the nails from your fingers. One day, you will fall into the precipice." He waved a languid hand.

"Let me show you what awaits you," he said silkily. Yuri backed away slowly. The man gestured sharply downwards and the ground fell from Yuri's feet. Yuri fell toward the ground.

His impact with the ground was as bone-shattering as he expected. Wincing, he raised his head, ignoring the searing agony rising from his rib cage. A gravestone wavered in his vision. He focused his eyes momentarily on the stone. The world faded into black, but not before he read the inscription.

'Yuri Hyuga - foolish child

1890 - 1905'

Yuri's eyelids fluttered open for a moment, before he closed them against the glare of the sun. He groaned and tried to fall back asleep.

__

"Not bloody likely," Death Emperor commented. _"If it's all the same, I'd rather take over your body after puberty. Too messy otherwise. So open your damn eyes!" _Yuri involuntarily opened his eyes a crack.

"Happy now?" he rasped. A small part of his brain was horrified by how weak he sounded, however Yuri's brain is a democracy and the larger part of his brain just wanted to be left alone so it could curl up and die.

__

"Only if you're not," Death Emperor replied absently. _"So far, the larger injuries have been healed. Unfortunately, the malnutrition hasn't."_

"That's nice," Yuri said vaguely as his eyelids slid shut again. Death Emperor hissed in frustration and contemplated murdering Yuri. He eventually decided against it, as he was not a big fan of suicide.

__

"Open your eyes and keep them open," Death Emperor snarled. Yuri opened his eyes and looked around blearily.

"Why?" he asked plaintively. Death Emperor wished that he had a pair of eyeballs, so he could roll them.

__

"Because if you don't eat something, you'll die," he answered. Yuri considered that statement for a moment.

"Why do you care?" was his eventual reply. Death Emperor really wanted those eyeballs now.

__

"We've had this discussion before. There should be some food left in your backpack," Yuri frowned for a minute, confused. _"The backpack is lying right next to your leg. Reach down and pull it up to you."_ Yuri reached down and weakly pulled the pack toward him. He undid the clasp with shaking hands and stared blankly into the bag.

__

"Take the cloak out of the bag. The food should be underneath," Death Emperor commanded. Yuri pulled the cloak out and was greeted with the sight of two bread rolls, a carrot and a cooked sausage. He picked up the carrot and began to eat it mechanically. The rolls and the sausage were consumed in a similar manner. 

__

"Now, stand up," Death Emperor suggested. Yuri pushed himself onto one elbow and considered the best way to do this. He came up with nothing useful, except sit up first, then think some more. He managed the sitting up part. He caught his breath, then attempted the more vigorous task of standing. Once on his feet, he swayed dizzily, then locked his knees. 

"What now?" he asked dully. 

__

"Start walking north. There's a village nearby," Death Emperor replied. Too exhausted to argue, Yuri staggered off in the general direction of north. The village wasn't all that far away, which was a good thing really. Yuri couldn't walk in a straight line if his life depended on it.

Eventually, Yuri's knees gave way and he slammed into the ground. He blinked in confusion, wondering how he had got there. Death Emperor sighed in exasperation.

__

"You fell. Get up," he said shortly. Yuri shook his head.

"No. Can't," he moaned. 

__

"Yes, you can. Do it!" Death Emperor replied. Yuri pushed himself onto his hands and knees and crawled hesitantly forward across the broken ground. His arms shook with fatigue, and he considered giving up. As if reading his mind, Death Emperor snarled,_"Don't you dare give up!"_

Yuri's elbows collapsed under him and his nose slammed into the ground. Blood trickled down his face and into his mouth, the coppery taste nausating him. Unable to push himself up onto his hands, Yuri dragged his body across the ground. At this point, he had stopping thinking about what he was doing and was relying on instinct.

Black fog crept across his vision, obscuring his path. Yuri closed his eyes and rolled onto his side. From far away, he heard the noise of children playing. His last coherent thought was 'Guess I've found the village after all.'

*

"Is he alright?" a childish voice asked softly. 

"I think so," another replied, lisping slightly.

"I think he's dead," a soft drawl. Collective gasps.

"I don't think he's dead," the first voice said doubtfully. Yuri opened his eyes slightly. Three children stared down at him. One of the children turned to another and retorted, "I told you he wasn't dead!", establishing that he was the first child.

"Hey," Yuri croaked. The children turned back to him, eyes wide. "You reckon you could get your parents?" They nodded solemnly. Yuri waited for them to leave. Realising that they had no intention of leaving just yet, he asked "Could you get them now?" They nodded again and ran off. Yuri sighed and vowed never to have children. He closed his eyes wearily, curled into a fetal ball and waited for the inevitable questioning from the adults in the village.

A hand shook his shoulder vigorously. Yuri moaned and tried to pull away. When that didn't work, he opened his eyes and looked at his attacker. Faded blue eyes stared back from a mop of dirty blonde hair, Yuri's first thought was that the teenager shaking him was a washed out watercolour painting. He grinned at the mental image.

"Sir? Are you all right?" the boy asked. "The Unholy trio just said that you looked dead. While you don't seem dead, you don't look all that well." Yuri blinked.

"No," he replied succintly. The boy frowned as he mentally replayed the conversation. A light of understanding dawned in his eyes.

"I think that I should get you up to the village. You almost made it there by yourself, if you're interested. Name's Alec." Yuri looked at Alec for a minute.

"Yuri," he replied finally.

"Do you think you can get up?" Alec asked doubtfully. Yuri bared his teeth. Alec repressed a shudder at the blood sheeting the enamel.

"Try and stop me," Yuri answered. He uncurled himself out of the ball and rolled onto his stomach. Here, he paused to catch his breath. Alec extended a hand to help, but Yuri snarled at it and pushed himself gracelessly to his feet. He wavered on his feet, then caught his balance. Unfortunately, this balance wasn't found for long. Yuri lifted one foot off the ground and the other leg buckled. Alec rushed forward and caught Yuri around the arm, holding him upright. Yuri considered snapping at him, but decided that his energy would be better spent holding himself upright.

By the time the two arrived at the village, Yuri wasn't making much of an effort in remaining upright. Alec was panting from the effort of dragging Yuri behind him. 

"Ten more feet," he sobbed under his breath. Yuri raised his head blearily, decided that interpreting that statement was too much effort and let his head fall. Alec staggered the last ten feet, clambered up the two steps that led to his porch and stopped. Yuri fell from his spasming hand and landed limply on the wood, arm thrown over his face. Alec knelt down beside him and frowned. The bones of Yuri's wrist stood out sharply from the flesh. Alec ran his hand along Yuri's arm, eyebrows rising. He looked around quickly. No one was watching. Alec closed his eyes and gestured sharply with his left hand. A shimmering blue light illuminated his hand and he touched Yuri gently, whispering the healing spell. Yuri's eyes shot open and he stared blindly at Alec. He shuddered and his eyes closed. 

Alec reached into his pocket and pulled out a mana root. He chewed it slowly, pensive expression on his face. Father Mikhail had recently delivered a sermon on witchcraft, all the while staring at Alec. Alec had always thought that his healing gifts were a gift from God, yet Father Mikhail had made him wary of using them. He had no wish to be denounced as a witch. He was secretly grateful that no one knew of the other gifts that he had. It seemed that God had given him a double-edged sword, the ability to save or destroy.

"I hope you're worth it," he said softly to the unconscious Yuri. Not expecting a reply, Alec grabbed Yuri's shoulder and dragged him into his house.

Authors Note: I know, I know. It's lame as hell and not a bit funny. Bite me. For anyone who didn't know, yes I did get into the Aerospace Avionics Engineering degree - very exciting. I've been busy recently, what with enrolling in uni, enrolling my friends into uni, enrolling their friends into uni and generally feeling like I'm surgically grafted to the keyboard. Why my uni thought doing enrollments online was a good idea, I'll never know. That and 38 hour weeks at work. Those suck like nothing else.

Extra brownie points for anyone who can identify where I pulled Alec from! No, he's not a real person. He'll be important for a while. Or I'll kill him off (a la Marianne - not funny!)

Nights Mistress

ps. Buy Kingdom Hearts. Watch The Two Towers. Repeatedly. (I'm on three times at the moment). Buy the LotR soundtracks and anything by Queensryche. (Shameless plug over now!)


	12. Misguided hatred truly lame, but you get...

__

"If you try to get out of bed one more time…." Death Emperor threatened. Yuri resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

"What will you do to stop me?" he taunted, secure in the knowledge that Death Emperor couldn't physically hurt him.

__

"A cappella singing," Death Emperor retorted. Yuri repressed a shudder. He was reasonably confident that Death Emperor couldn't carry a tune if his, or more accurately Yuri's, life depended on it. _"Anyway, why do you even try? Six times you've tried and of all those tries, how many did you manage to remain upright? None!"_

"Eventually it's gotta work!" Yuri said optimistically. 

__

"I extremely doubt that," Death Emperor replied dryly. _"If fact, I have a sneaking suspicion that the more you do it, the longer we'll be stuck here. And if you think you're bored…."_

"Yeah, yeah I know. You don't even get the dubious thrills of watching the world fade to black and feeling the bruises from the floor. Trust me, you're missing nothing," Yuri drawled. 

__

"And whose fault is that? Not mine, let me assure you!" Death Emperor said snippily. Yuri opened his mouth, witty repartee on his lips when Alec stuck his head around the doorframe.

"Who are you talking to?" he asked innocently. The rest of Alec appeared as he scanned the room. "There's no one here," he said in tones of surprise.

"I wasn't talking to anyone. I just woke up," Yuri said quickly. He affected a wide-eyed innocence. "Guess I must talk in my sleep." Alec looked at him, eyebrows raised in skepticism, then shrugged.

"Well, I have to go hunting. Seems as though the usual group didn't get me anything." He paused, his face a mixture of anxiety and annoyance. Yuri looked at him in confusion, not entirely sure of the dynamics in the village. Noticing Yuri's stare, Alec forced a grin onto his face and stretched his hands toward Yuri, who frowned and backed away.

"I'm trying to heal you, if you would hold still," Alec whispered, looking furtively over his shoulder. He caught Yuri on the shoulders and closed his eyes. Yuri's eyes widened as his shoulders were encased in a blue light. Alec's eyes snapped open and the light disappeared.

"I wouldn't have picked you as a water-class," Yuri said softly.

"I'm not," Alec replied equally softly, emphasising this with a shake of his head. "It's complicated. I'll explain later." His hands slid off Yuri's shoulders and hung limply by his sides and his eyes were wild with an emotion that Yuri couldn't identify. For one brief moment, Alec looked much younger then his sixteen years. Then the mask slammed back into place and he spun away from Yuri. He paused momentarily at the door to pick up his Black Radly bow and walked out, quiver bouncing against his shoulder.

"What's going on?" Yuri called out plaintively to the empty room. No one replied, which was to be expected. Yuri heaved a long suffering sigh and contemplated whinging about the injustice of the world, but decided that adolescents around the world have already said everything worth saying about that subject, and a lot that wasn't worth the oxygen burnt by their lungs.

*

Alec walked through the forest warily, half expecting an ambush. The rational part of his brain scoffed at his caution, pointing out all the likely reasons why the hunting group forgot about him. He wasn't convinced. Normally he wasn't this paranoid, however Father Mikhail's sermon had awakened his fears.

A bush rustled to his left, and Alec spun around sharply, arrow nocked on his bow.

"Don't shoot, Mr Alec! I need to ask you something," a childish voice lisped. Alec lowered the bow and stepped forward.

"Where's the other two?" he asked himself. "Christophe? Where're your friends?" he asked louder. His only response was a quiet giggle. He stepped into the bushes and almost stepped on the Unholy Trio, who collectively squealed in surprise.

Alec squatted with them in the bushes, bow lying by his side, and waited patiently for them to recover from their shock. Once their breathing regained a more normal rhythm, Alec raised an eyebrow and gestured for them to continue speaking.

"Mr Alec," Christophe lisped. "Is it true what Father Mikhail said? Are you a witch?" Alec felt his face pale. He shook his head woodenly.

"No, I'm not a witch," he said shakily. "I just have some special talents that God gave me when I was born." The three didn't look relieved.

"Father Mikhail told everyone that you were, and that you worked for the devil. That you had burnt down the Fletchery because the devil told you to," Jason, customary drawl absent from his voice, paused for a minute and raised haunted eyes toward Alec. "He said that you murdered my mum and dad. That's not true, is it?" Alec shook his head again.

"Mr Alec," Daniel said urgently. Alec turned a startled gaze on him. He rarely spoke, allowing Jason and Christopher to speak for him. "Mr Alec, run." Alec stared at him for a minute while Jason and Christophe gave Daniel identical horrified stares. "Run, before they get you." Alec was about to question Daniel further when he heard the distinctive noise of a large group of people. Alec stood up fluidly and ran into the forest, abandoning his bow.

His breath sobbing in his chest, Alec's feet flew over the ground. He had risked one glance behind him and what he had seen had inspired him to run faster. The spiraling smoke from torches was clearly visible through the trees and the thunder of angry feet reverberated through his body. His eyes searched desperately for somewhere to hide.

His foot caught on a tree root and he fell onto his hands and knees. He pushed himself upright and kept running. The eerily familiar sound of a fired arrow echoed through the forest. Alec knew that sound, having fired many arrows in his life. He had never expected to be at the receiving end of an arrow. It dived into the ground next to his ankle, almost grazing it on the way through. Alec barely had time to acknowledge this fact when a better-aimed arrow landed in his calf. His leg buckled under him and Alec landed heavily on the ground. He picked himself up onto his elbows and started to drag himself into a cavity created by a set of particularly gnarled tree roots. His painfully slow progress was halted when someone rested a heavy foot on his ribs. A wave of magic washed over him.

"Pick the demon's spawn up," a harsh voice spat. Alec, recognising the voice as his neighbour, tried to call out to him, but his voice was silenced. When no hands were forthcoming, the harsh voice commented in tones of great disgust, "He can't do anything, the priest silenced him." 

One lone pair of hands grabbed him roughly by the shoulders and stood him upright. Alec wavered on his feet and looked at the rabble with unfocused eyes. Someone pushed him from behind and he fell to his hands and knees. His head hanging toward the ground, Alec peered through the lattice of his hair at his tormentors. His neighbour picked him up and set him on his feet again. Alec closed his eyes and fell limply toward the ground. The villagers picked up his supine form and carried him back to the village, complaining loudly.

*

Yuri's eyes opened slowly and he frowned in confusion. He had been sleeping fitfully when the noise of the villagers' return had awoken him. He pushed himself upright and climbed out of bed. 

"Alec?" he called. There was no response. Concerned, Yuri got dressed and walked to the door. He opened it slightly and looked outside. It seemed that every villager was congregated in the centre of the village, with a priest on a stage as the focus. As he watched, a small figure was pushed onto the stage and tied to a wooden pole.

"What's going on?" he whispered in horror.

__

"A witch burning," Death Emperor replied soberly.

"A what?" Yuri exclaimed. "I thought those stopped years ago!"

__

"No, the Church still practices its hypocrisy. They employ some mages and burn the rest as Satan's minions," Death Emperor said in tones of disgust.

Yuri opened the door further and slipped through the gap. He walked slowly toward the stage, attempting to look casual. Once he reached the edge of the throng, he paused to gather his resolve, then dived into the sea of jostling elbows.

"Alec Kerry! You have been found to be a witch. As such, we will purify your soul in the flames of redemption!" a fervent voice shouted. Yuri's head shot up and his eyes involuntarily sought out the figure on the stake. Now that he was closer, Alec's blond hair was easily recognisable. Yuri pushed forcefully through the suddenly immobile crowd, edging his way toward the stage.

He stopped when he could touch the stage with an outstretched hand. Yuri stole one last glance at the stake and closed his eyes. The familiar sight of a brown wellspring welcomed him, and he extended mental fingers to cup a small portion.

__

"What are you doing?" Death Emperor demanded, voice panicked.

__

"What I have to," Yuri replied as he forced the transformation. He reopened his eyes to a whole new sight. The crowd had drawn away from him and the mutters of "demon" were prevalent. Yuri flexed his legs and threw himself onto the stage. While he was transforming, the stake had been set alight. Alec's eyes were wild as the heat from the flames travelled up his legs. Yuri swore and tore his bonds apart. Alec fell forward and Yuri caught him before he fell into the flames. In the corner of his vision, he saw the priest advance toward him, chanting a spell. The spell was completed and Yuri felt a wash of magic.

"You tried to silence me? What's next, exorcism?" he said incredulously. He stepped menacingly toward the priest, who raised his cross toward him. "That works for vampires," Yuri explained in tones reserved for a backward child. "Do I look like a vampire?" The priest looked behind Yuri's shoulder and smiled. Yuri, having slightly more intelligence then bad guys from B grade movies, jumped to the side, then ran for it, Alec still in his arms.

Authors Note: Seeing as though no-one told me to kill off Alec, he's here to stay. Good thing too, as he does play an important part later on. No one guessed who Alec was! (Author looks at screen mournfully) He's a character from Lynn Flewelling's books, which I would recommend that everyone still breathing should read.

Also, this chapter would have been up much sooner, if I hadn't had a birthday. Yes, I am now an official adult (under Aussie laws anyway). Scary, huh? My parents think so.


	13. The Truth is a Fickle Thing: Attempt Two

Note: This is actually the proof read version, unlike the one originally posted, which had spelling mistakes in it. Actually, if you see any spelling mistakes, please email me at **quinn_dexter@hotmail.com and let me know.  The reason why my pseudonym is Nights Mistress is that I don't go to sleep until about 2am and the later it gets, the worse my spelling is.**

Once clear of the village, Yuri placed Alec gently on the ground and reverted to his normal appearance. Ignoring complaints from Death Emperor, he cocked his head quizzically at Alec and raised his eyebrow. Alec stared back with wide blue eyes, then lowered his gaze toward his feet.

"So," Yuri said finally, drawing out his words. "Mind telling me what all that was about?" he asked, gesturing toward the village. "Cause I just risked my ass saving you, and I'd like to know _what the hell happened_!" Startled, Alec's head shot up.

"You know how every person is sensitive to a certain class of magic, right?" Alec asked softly. Yuri nodded, curious as to what this had to do with anything.  "You may also know that some monsters can have no predisposition for any class," Alec continued.

_"That's pretty rare though. Generally monsters are just crap at casting magic,"_ Death Emperor commented. Yuri imagined slapping Death Emperor around the back of the head. It was a pity that his imaginings couldn't be an actuality. It would have made life much easier.

"What you might not know is that occasionally, a person is born with a gift for all classes. Like me." Alec's voice was barely louder then a whisper.

_"That's very rare,"_ Death Emperor whispered in the back of Yuri's mind. _"I've only ever heard of one other case, and she went mad. Although," Death Emperor mused. __"She had the Demon Eyes as well."_

"Thankfully, I don't have the Demon Eyes, like that poor girl from the Middle Ages," Alec continued, unknowingly answering Death Emperor. 

"But, how do you know?" Yuri demanded. "I don't know what class I am, so how do you?"

_"You're darkness. Like it was hard to work out. You're a harmonixer from the Hyuga line, what else could you be?"_ Death Emperor replied dryly. Yuri blinked at that piece of information and resolved to find out more about that later.

"You're darkness," Alec said slowly. "Except, I've seen other Darkness-classed, and you're different. More," Alec paused as he considered. "It's like they're a shallow puddle of darkness, and you're an ocean of infinite, inky depths."

_"A rather flowery way of saying it,"_ Death Emperor commented. _"But yes, you are different from other darkness-classed. The world was very lucky that Ben Hyuga was a harmonixer and the second last of his line."_

"Huh?" Yuri asked. Alec looked at him strangely. "Sorry," Yuri said sheepishly. "I was listening, honest!"

"Who do you talk to?" Alec asked, tone serious. "I know that you're not insane…"

_"Yet.__ I'm working on it," Death Emperor interrupted cheerily._

"And that thing you turned into before, while not a demon, certainly wasn't human. And what have you seen, to make you scream in your sleep?" It was Yuri's turn to be reluctant to tell his story.

"I'm a harmonixer," Yuri said finally, staring past Alec's shoulder into the horizon. He waited for the inevitable gasp of horror and disgust. When it didn't come, Yuri looked down at Alec's calm face. "That means that I can capture souls and turn myself into demons," he said harshly. Alec's expression didn't change. "What don't you understand? I'm a monster!"

"I know what a Harmonixer is," Alec said softly. "That doesn't make you a monster." Yuri raised an incredulous eyebrow but remained silent.

_"Will you stop with all the self-pity!"_ Death Emperor broke in angrily. _"It's getting really tedious." _

"Yes mum," Yuri replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes. Alec was trying unsuccessfully to stifle his giggles. He yawned and blinked in confusion.

"Huh? It's the middle of the afternoon," he said aloud. Yuri grinned.

"Let me guess, they healed you? I'd say that they used your magic to do it too, as I doubt that there was another light-classed in the village. Sometimes I admire the ingenuity of the Church. Then I come to my senses and decide that they are corrupt, money hungry leeches," Yuri said dryly.  Alec responded with another yawn.

"And to make matters worse, I don't have any Mana Roots. Sorry Alec, you're going to have to sleep it off," Yuri continued. Alec leaned backward onto the ground and closed his eyes. Yuri waited for a few minutes.

"Alec? Are you asleep?" Alec didn't answer. Taking this as an indication that Alec was asleep, Yuri sat down and leant against a tree stump, legs stretched in front of him.

"Death Emperor? I think we need to have a talk," he said softly.

_"Do I get a choice in the matter?"_  Death Emperor replied.

"No. What did you mean, that the world was lucky that my father was a Harmonixer?" Yuri said bluntly. He was in no mood to use tact. That was for people who had had much more sleep and patience then he had.

_"Your mother was light-class, your father was darkness-class. Ever asked Alec what class his parents were? Or if he remembers them?"_

"What?" Yuri blurted aloud. He surreptitiously stole a look at Alec's sleeping form. He eyed him warily and flinched when he moved. He grinned at his own stupidity when Alec shifted into a more comfortable position and continued snoring quietly.

_"Alec is a Chimera-class because his parents were light and darkness. Any child born from that union is either sensitive to all magic or resistant to all." _Death Emperor spoke slowly and distinctly, as if speaking to a small or mentally backward child.

"What's so bad about that?" Yuri asked, shrugging. Personally, he saw no problem with either being able to cast every magic or being resistant to magic. It seemed like a perfect skill for a monster hunter to possess, and he said so. Death Emperor sighed.

_"If you're sensitive to all, you have no resistance to the opposing class. In other words, if magic is cast on you, it's effects are magnified. If you're sensitive to none, then healing and support magic have no effect on you."  _Yuri imagined Death Emperor rolling his eyes as he said that. It seemed the type of thing that he would do.

"'Kay, I can see why that would be bad. Why aren't I one of them?" Yuri asked in curiosity. 

_"Being a harmonixer means that any child you have will be darkness-classed, without exception. Anyway, I don't think that the world could cope with two Chimera-classed. It's probably the sign of the Apocalypse or something."_

"The what?" Yuri asked in confusion.

_"Your education has been lacking. The Apocalypse is the end of the world." _Yuri could hear Death Emperor trying to speak through his stifled laughter and tried very hard to repress an urge of irritation.

"Right. I take it that's bad," Yuri asked ingenuously, winsome smile playing on his lips. It really was a pity that Death Emperor didn't live somewhere other then Yuri's head, so he could see little things like that. Otherwise they were wasted, which is a real pity, as Yuri was getting to be very good at them.

_"You could say that. Then again, you could say that the Black Plague was just a little inconvenience. It all depends on perspective,"_ Death Emperor replied sarcastically. He continued to mutter unintelligibly, generally ranting about an "idiot boy" and "what Gods did I piss off to get lumbered with this deficient?"

"Thanks for that. It's nice to know that if my self-confidence ever gets too great, you'll cut it down to size," Yuri replied, trying to sound serious. Instead he just sounded flat, but it was worth a try and he should be commended.

_"All in the job description.__ It's a dirty job and I get to do it," Death Emperor replied, with more glee then an ex-God should have. Yuri considered pointing this fact out to Death Emperor, but decided against it. He was enjoying the break from dispossessed souls trying to drive him insane. It was getting a bit repetitive really._

_"Coincidently, you might like to take a nap as well. I can't absorb too much more of the fatigue poisons,"_ Death Emperor said suddenly. 

"You can do that?" Yuri asked in surprise.

_"Not for much longer. In fact, you might want to lie down,"_ Death Emperor said hurriedly. _"I'll explain later." Yuri opened his mouth to complain, but his mouth wouldn't work. He tried to force his eyes wide open, but a black abyss yawned under his feet, and he tumbled into the darkness into unconsciousness._

_A pair of hands reached out toward him. Slender, delicate hands with tapered fingers and neat fingernails, a woman's hands. Yuri clasped them in his larger hands, his broken fingernails contrasting with the manicured ones, although both sets of hands shared the same delicate bone structure. Yuri looked up the arm and saw the face of his mother._

_"Mum?" he whispered in shock, eyes wide. The woman's face twisted in disgust and she pulled her hands away._

_"And who are you, to be calling me your mother?" she asked imperiously. Yuri looked at her, confusion and hurt in his eyes._

_"I'm your son. Don't you remember me?" he asked, his voice incredibly fragile. She stepped backward._

_"You are not my son. You're nothing more than a monster," she said in disgust. She turned away from him and disappeared into the darkness. Yuri stared after her, looking nothing more than a lost child with no hope of returning home._

_"Mum?" he asked softly. A malicious laugh echoed around him, and Yuri spun around desperately, searching for the voice._

"Yuri!"

Yuri's eyes shot open and grabbed his attacker with one hand as he reached for their throat with the other. Alec made a strangled noise, and Yuri quickly let him go with a muttered apology. Alec stared at him, rubbing his throat with one hand.

"Right, that's the last time I wake you out of a nightmare," Alec rasped. He moved his hands in an intricate sequence of gestures. A white glow suffused his body then died away.

"I was wondering," Alec asked hesitantly, voice less strained. "If I could travel with you. Just a little way! I've got relatives in another village south of here."

_"No,"_ Death Emperor replied promptly. _"I have enough to worry about with you, let alone a chimera class who'll probably die before he reaches twenty anyway considering his track record."_

"Sure!" Yuri replied. Death Emperor spluttered. Yuri grinned and Alec resigned himself to a long trip of hearing one side of a conversation.

Authors Note: Kay, I know it's short. Actually, I thought this chapter was already up, so I spent weeks looking mournfully at my account wondering where my reviews were. Don't you just love it when you forget to post the chapter?

Next chapter; Death Emperor and Yuri shall snipe some more (cause it's just so fun to write), the three will walk a lot and Alec decides that being a chimera class isn't all that bad.

On an unrelated note, I've realised that I haven't put any disclaimers for my stories. Here's my general one:

I do not own anything to do with Shadow Hearts. Nor do I want to. I want a tank. Then I don't have to worry about giving way or parking. And I'd like to see the driving examiner's face when I rock up to the exam in a tank. However, I do own the personality possessed by Death Emperor. He is mine. 

Oh yes, before I forget. I actually looked at the Judgement Ring today. Guess what? Greyfriars (or whatever, I'm writing this under sleep deprivation) was right, the names of her characters are there. Just call me a natural blonde.

Nights Mistress J 

Aenea says "I finally got a job!  I'm a beta reader!  YAY!!!!!!!!!!  Someone loves me!!!!!!!  I'm…freaking everyone out, so I'll shut up now…(shamelessly plugs her stories) *grin*"

I have finally wrestled the keyboard from Aenea (it took a long time cause I have the flu and am so far out of it that it's not funny - well, not for me anyway). 


	14. Appearances Can Be Deceiving

Alec decided that after much consideration that Yuri was a lunatic. Stark raving mad. He had to be. Only a lunatic would actually _enjoy_ bush bashing. He scowled darkly as yet another branch flicked into his face, opening a scratch across the bridge of his nose. He suspected that his face resembled a chess board, his hair kept falling into his eyes and….was Yuri whistling? Alec gritted his teeth and contemplated murder. 

Unlike Alec, Yuri was enjoying the bush bashing. For some reason, he was in a good mood, and indulging his hidden desire for wanton destruction of unsuspecting foliage was strangely therapeutic.

_"Let me guess, the next time you're angry, we're going to mutilate poor innocent trees?"_ Death Emperor commented. _"If we're ever short for money you could work as a clearer or lumberjack or even an engineer." _

"Why an engineer?" Yuri asked aloud. He waved one of his claws at an offending knot of vines, untangling it as if it was the Gordian Knot. He grinned at the destruction and turned his head to see if Alec appreciated it. Alec was scowling at him, blood dripping off his nose like tinted rain.

_"Because you like demolishing things. And explosions. And other forms of destruction. Why not an engineer?" _Death Emperor replied innocently, oblivious to Alec's bad mood.

"You…are a madman!" Alec exploded. "How can you possibly enjoy this?" He gestured with his arm to encompass the whole experience. Yuri shrugged.

"I suspect it's the whole destruction thing. It relieves stress you know," Yuri replied. Alec rolled his eyes.

"That does say a lot about you, you know. That's not a good thing, by the way," Alec replied. 

_"Why? What's wrong with a bit of mass destruction? Always kept the followers in line,"_ Death Emperor replied.

"Followers? You?" Yuri replied incredulously. Alec frowned in confusion, then his face cleared.

"Your fusion soul, I assume?" he asked. Yuri nodded absently.

_"Of course I had followers! I was a god!"_ Death Emperor replied indignantly. Yuri smiled a slow, lazy smile and crossed his arms.

"Evidently gods are dependent on followers," he mused. "So, why don't we keep running into ex-gods? Surely there should be heaps of them running around." Death Emperor spluttered.

"Maybe you have to have an affinity toward them?" Alec suggested. "Like with elemental magic. Someone with say, Greek blood might be able to call upon the Greek pantheon. You..um…where were your parents born again?"

"I'm a half-blood. Half Russian, half Japanese. I know, I know, it's a strange combination. To cut a long story short, Dad was on a mission, met Mum and took her home," Yuri replied a manner that suggested that he had been asked that question many times in his life. "The eye colour though, I have no idea." Alec waved away the last comment.

"Okay, you probably could call on Slavic and Japanese gods. Maybe some others, I don't know. This is just a theory, mind you. For all I know, it could have nothing to do with that at all," Alec replied, laughing.

_"Actually, he's eerily close. Nice to know that someone around here uses the intelligence that God gave them," _Death Emperor said, sounding vaguely disquieted.

"Ah, Death Emperor," Yuri asked, tone innocent and finger pointed in the air as if to point out the inconsistency. "I know for a fact that you aren't an omnipotent being, cause if you were, we wouldn't get into as much trouble. So how can a god give intelligence to anyone?"

_"There are gods and there are _gods._ Must I spell everything out to you?"_ Death Emperor fumed. Yuri grinned, a baring of teeth that demonstrated that Yuri knew exactly how much he was annoying Death Emperor and didn't care. Alec looked at that expression and winced in sympathy for Death Emperor. In fact, Alec was surprised that Yuri hadn't hunted down someone to perform an exorcism. Surely someone with the Demon Eyes wasn't that rare. Or, failing that, simple Spectral vision would suffice.

"Actually, considering that you're my parental figure…" Yuri's voice trailed off. Death Emperor had decided that he had had enough and was currently trying to grab hold of his wellspring. Yuri's face twisted as he realised what Death Emperor was trying to do. He closed his eyes against the pain and prepared to fight Death Emperor off.

"For Christ's sake!" Alec snapped. The pain stopped and Yuri got a distinct feeling of apprehension from Death Emperor. He opened his eyes, half dreading what he would see. 

Alec glared at him, hanks of blond hair tumbling into his eyes and masking some of the cuts. Hands on his hips and feet spread apart, he didn't look particularly happy.

_"He hasn't lost it. Thank you Lady Luck,"_ Death Emperor whispered fervently. 

"Hasn't lost what?" Yuri demanded. "And what the hell was that for?" He rubbed his head and pouted. Alec, still fuming, gritted his teeth. 

_"That was because you were being an evil little troll,"_ Death Emperor replied angrily. _"Genetic drift has a lot to answer for."_

"Someone in my family was a troll? Isn't that not only physically impossible, but really..eewy," Yuri asked, face twisted in distaste.

"Would certainly explain a lot," Alec said shortly. He appeared to be calmer, which Yuri took as a good sign. He still had no idea what was making Death Emperor so edgy around Alec, and had no wish to find out in the immediate future.

_"It's possible. Just really disgusting,"_ Death Emperor commented. Yuri grimaced in disgust. 

"That is so gross. I can't even think of words to describe how gross that is," Yuri moaned. "Anyway, shouldn't we keep going? I think Alec wants to get to the next village before the end of the world."

_"I'm reasonably confident that we can accommodate that. How about you lift one leg into the air and place it onto the ground a small distance from your body. Repeat for the other leg. That's called walking, something that you're in control of here,"_ Death Emperor replied snidely. 

"We only stopped so that you could taunt your fusion soul. Which I think is remarkably immature," Alec said. "Anytime you like." He gestured mockingly at the maze of green arms, tipped with vicious claws. Yuri brandished his claws and started to cut his way through the foliage. Alec sighed and followed in his wake.

*

"Alec?" Yuri asked. He heard Alec sigh wearily.

"Yes?" he replied heavily. 

"How did they know you were a …whatsitcalled class?" Yuri's voice, while light, had an undertone of urgency to it. If it was a birthmark, or something equally obvious, then Yuri felt that he needed to know about it.

"A chimera class? I used too much magic in a small period of time. People with different affinities got to talking and realised that I had used more then one element. Hence the witch-hunt," Alec's voice was flat, as if he was trying to suppress his emotions.

"But, hadn't you lived there for years? Why now?" Yuri was genuinely confused. It seemed to be a common emotion for him recently.

"It doesn't matter," Alec voice brooked no further discussion into the matter. Yuri closed his mouth with a snap.

_"He was trying to save you. Sacrificed his life to save yours. Don't you feel special now?"_ Death Emperor mocked.

"Shut up Death Emperor," Yuri muttered wearily. He ran his claws through his hair (disentangling the knots rather effectively), winced as a trailing edge cut into his scalp, shook his hair out of his eyes (and dislodging the shorn ends of his hair onto the ground) and continued hacking through the undergrowth.

"Look, Yuri. I'm sorry," Alec called to his retreating back. Yuri stopped and turned around.

"What for?" Yuri asked, puzzled look on his face.

"For being so short tempered. I don't know why I've been like that lately. Frankly, it's starting to disturb me," Alec said apologetically. Yuri shrugged.

"Nah, don't worry about it. I've put up with Death Emperor for years, I think I can handle one little chimera class," Yuri answered easily.

_"I've got nothing on him,"_ Death Emperor said ominously. Yuri frowned, stored it into his 'what Death Emperor has to say about Alec' area and didn't comment. He was starting to get an idea that whatever a chimera class was, it could kick Death Emperor's ass. Yuri mentally grinned at the mental image of Alec forcibly shoving his foot into Death Emperor's buttocks. Maybe if Alec was a bit more…physically imposing, then Yuri wouldn't find it so amusing. It's a bit hard to take someone seriously as a threat if they barely topped five foot. Yuri, from his height of 5'8, was hardly intimidated by someone as delicately built as Alec.

"I'm not little!" Alec said vehemently. "I just haven't started my growth spurt yet!" Yuri raised one eyebrow and deigned to comment. He personally thought that Alec had reached his adult height and should just accept it. After all, children's clothing is much cheaper then adult sizes. Yuri thought that this had to be an up side to being so incredibly short, and said so. Alec's death glare was priceless and beyond description.

_"You know, he won't go into the village," _Death Emperor said abruptly. _"He can't."_

"Huh?" Yuri whispered.

_"Ask him if something whispers in the back of his mind, telling him that he has to be somewhere, do something,"_ Death Emperor said cryptically. Yuri shrugged, rolled his eyes and called out to Alec.

"Hey, Death Emperor wants to know if something, and this is a direct quote by the way, whispers in the back of your mind, telling you stuff," Yuri yelled out.

"No," Alec said too quickly. Death Emperor snarled.

_"He's lying!"_ Death Emperor pounced on Yuri's wellspring and started the fusion. Yuri, too startled to respond, cried out in shock. Alec turned around at the noise and stopped, eyes growing impossibly wide. Death Emperor leaped and landed on Alec, knocking him into the dirt.

"Now, Alec Kerry," Death Emperor rasped. "Tell me the truth. What does the voice tell you to do?" Alec whimpered in fear and closed his eyes. Galvanised by Alec's fear, Yuri fought off Death Emperor and reversed the fusion.

"Alec?" he asked hesitantly. No response. "Alec?" he asked louder.

"Ragnorok!" Alec yelled, his hands moving like terrified birds. Yuri, not recognising the spell, pushed himself off Alec and ran for cover. A convenient rock loomed and Yuri dived behind it. He would prefer something more substantial, like a fort; however those were in short supply.

The resulting fireworks display was very pretty, if you're into mass destruction things. If that doesn't excite you, it was rather terrifying. The sound effects added to the atmosphere. Once the noise and magic aura disappeared, Yuri tentatively poked his head from behind the rock.

"Alec? You know, that's what we call overkill. I know that Death Emperor's a little lacking in the people skills and all, but killing him, and me for that matter, is not the way to go about correcting his behaviour," Yuri called, trying to add levity to the situation.

Alec made an incoherent noise. Yuri looked over to Alec and his eyes widened. Alec was sitting in a largish crater with a charred tree being the only thing remaining relatively intact. As Yuri watched, the tree crumbled into dust.

"That's cool," Yuri said in awe. Alec's head turned slowly to Yuri's direction. Face pale and blank, blue eyes staring blindly at nothing, Alec barely registered Yuri.

"What?" Alec asked vaguely. He gestured feebly at the lifeless crater, as if trying to magic it back. Yuri moved fluidly toward him. While he didn't think it was likely that Alec could perform necromancy, why take the chance? His fears were unfounded, as Alec's eyes, still unfocused, rolled up into his head and he went limp.

"Damn," Yuri said with feeling. A feeling called "I'm sure freaking glad that's not me"

_"And that's why chimera classes never live long,"_ Death Emperor whispered. _"They get Called to do something, or find something and most of the time they ignore the Call, or can't follow. Their powers get out of control and eventually they immolate themselves in their own magic if they don't answer the Call. I suspect that Master Kerry here has been ignoring the Call, thinking that he's going insane." _

"That's horrible," Yuri whispered, afraid to wake Alec. "So, what's he searching for?" 

If Death Emperor could shrug, he would have.

_"Search me,"_ he replied. Yuri winced at the bad pun. _"Try asking him when he wakes up. I have a sneaking suspicion that we might be involved. We always are."_

Authors Note: I'M BACK! And hiding from Maclaurin Polynomials (the CIA of the Mathematics world). Aenea (who also refers to herself as The God of Adding Bits Here and There, because The Ruler of the Fanfiction Universe title was already taken) has kindly offered her services as beta reader (actually what happens is that she steals the keyboard and adds stuff. Beta reader is shorter)

Bush bashing is Aussie slang for, well, bashing your way through the bush, scrub, forest, whatever you lot call it. I don't know if there is an equivalent outside of Australia, but feel free to correct me.

The Gordian Knot is a part of Greek mythology. It was a stupendously intricate knot, and the person to disentangle it would become king. Some Greek dude (I studied this myth four years ago, so I think I can forget small details) cut the thing in half and became king because he was a smart-ass. Back in those days, you were rewarded for being a smart ass. Pity that's not the case now…

The Ragnorok is the Norse Apocalypse, where everyone in Valhalla will come down and try to open a can of whup ass on the residents in Hell. This is all done to Wagner's _Ride of the Valkyries_, otherwise known as _The Tank Song. _(And yes, the minute I buy my tank, I'm driving to the nearest CD shop to buy a Wagner CD. What's a tank without the tank song?)

Thanks for the last chapter go to Greyfriers (may your stories never have a problem with formatting) and Kim (may your computer save often and without errors). Other people to thank for other chapters are Nat (is that short for anything?), Gutterfiend, Aenea, martius248, Natasha, Annael and aegis.

Next Chapter: Alec wakes up (and does not catch on fire, much to Aenea's dismay), an Italian swords mistress makes an appearance and the village is given up as a bad idea.


	15. Who cares? No one reads these things any...

Alec opened his eyes tentatively, unsure what to expect. A raw crater wasn't it, with the only form of life being a pensive Yuri, back to Alec, staring into the horizon. Alec pushed himself onto his elbows, crying out softly as a rock dug into his elbow. Yuri turned around and looked at Alec. Alec was disturbed by the lack of expression on his face. Usually it was animated with his mercurial personality, sorrow and amusement warring with one another. This blank canvas was…it was as if Yuri wasn't in front of him at all, that it was a stranger.

"Hi," Alec said nervously. "I know this sounds stupid, but what happened?" The mask never lifted from Yuri's face and he stared mutely at Alec.

"Okay, now you're creeping me out," Alec commented. "What's up Yuri?"

"Who's Yuri?" Yuri replied. Alec looked at him strangely.

"You are, aren't you?" he replied, unsure what was going on.

"I don't know," the pseudo-Yuri replied, sorrow in his voice. "Maybe he is." He gestured behind Alec to a point just behind his shoulder. Alec turned his head, catching a glimpse of an animal mask and a trench coat. He turned back as the pseudo-Yuri continued to speak.

"The pieces will shatter again, and I don't know if they'll be found. All too many are gone." His voice sounded hollow, as if he was speaking from far away. Alec leaned closer, trying to catch Yuri's words.

"Goodbye Alec," Yuri whispered. Alec frowned at these words, closing his eyes against a wave of dizziness. It swept over him, dragging him into the darkness, toward the light.

*

A low moan started Yuri out of his contemplation and he turned toward Alec, who visibly flinched, probably from the sight of the crater. It wasn't all that attractive really.

"Hi," Alec said nervously. "I know this sounds stupid, but what happened?" Yuri laughed.

" 'What didn't happen?' is probably a more appropriate question," he replied dryly. "What's the last thing you remember?" Alec shivered.

"Death Emperor, that's his name right? He pounced on me, demanding to know if I've answered some call thing. After that, not a thing." He shrugged. "Let me guess, I cast some kick-ass spell that made this whopping big crater," he added jokingly. Yuri's considering look brought him up short.

"What? I did this? How? Why?" Alec said through wooden lips. 

"Yes, spell, don't know," Yuri replied. Alec, after a moment's confusion, mentally replayed his last sentence. He nodded his understanding, or lack thereof.

_"Very informative.__ Nice to know that if ever we need something obfuscated, you're the one to see,"_ Death Emperor commented.

"If it wasn't for you, we wouldn't be in this mess, so shut up!" Yuri hissed.

_"The boy would have lost control eventually. It's inevitable. He doesn't even know what he's looking for and he's rapidly running out of time. In fact, it would be a kindness to put him out of his misery,"_ Death Emperor said maliciously. Yuri's eyes widened.

"Not a chance in hell!" he snapped. Alec jumped.

"Are you quite finished? Because, fascinating, as it is to see someone rant at thin air when there's a living person next to them, I have places to be. And you're in my way," a cool alto replied. Yuri's head snapped to where the voice was.

A tall, slender woman of about twenty stood behind him, her stance challenging. Wearing leather armour (which fitted her perfectly Yuri noted, a fact he was very appreciative of), she loosely clasped a sword in her left hand and the pommel of a broad sword was clearly visible from over her shoulder.

"Are you quite finished gawking?" she drawled. "As I said, places to be, and none of those include a hormonal fifteen year old with his gay lover." Yuri spluttered, Alec providing an interesting counterpoint.

"We're not gay," Yuri got out finally. "And who the hell are you?"

"Valentina Aura Maria Fabri. Lady knight to the last heir to the Italian throne. Of course they gave up their claim centuries ago, but it's a family thing, my being their knight. And you are…?" Valentina raised one eyebrow.

"Yuri Hyuga and this is Alec Kerry," Yuri said, gesturing at himself and Alec in turn. Valentina's other eyebrow migrated up her forehead.

"Alec Kerry? Weren't you the one who called upon his demons to escape a witch burning? You know that there's a reward on your head," Valentina said matter of factly. Alec gasped. Yuri shrugged.

"I wouldn't worry about it. After the first six, it's not exciting anymore," he advised. "And Valentia,"

"Valentina," Alec interjected.

"Whatever. What are you going to do about it, exactly? If you even think about returning Alec to his death, you'll have to get past me," Yuri said, trying to repress a shiver of fear. Valentina held that sword as if she knew how to use it very effectively, and he didn't want to think about the broad sword and the myriad of other weapons she, no doubt, had stashed around her person.

Valentina destroyed his ego with the talent that all women have over men. She laughed at his bravado. A truly devastating weapon.

"I have no interest in either of you, Master Hyuga. In fact, I was merely warning Master Kerry here about not visiting any village near here. They all know about the events at his intended execution. If he doesn't want to be set upon, he should avoid them. Oh, and my mistress wishes me to give you this." Valentina pulled a pair of throwing knives out of a pocket on her leg (which involved some acrobatics that Yuri was sure that were impossible) and handed them to Alec. He accepted them silently, questions written on his face.

"That should help you a little. Oh and I'm to tell you this; seek the avatar of the night. Don't ask me what it means, I don't know." Valentina pushed past Yuri and started to disappear into the forest.

"Wait!" Yuri called. Valentina stopped, quizzical expression on her face.

"How did you know where to find us?" Yuri asked quickly.

"You mean other then the huge crater in the middle of nowhere? I can find anything I want," Valentina said cryptically and continued on her way, long dark braid swinging behind her. When Yuri was sure that she was out of earshot he whistled lowly.

"That's something you don't see every day," Yuri said in awe.

_"A fact for which we are all very grateful for, otherwise we'd never get anything done. You almost drowned her in drool," _Death Emperor replied sarcastically.

"I did not!" Yuri blurted indignantly.

"What was the deal with the constant staring? I'm sure it was embarrassing for her," Alec asked innocently.

"Christ, now I'm being assaulted on two fronts. I hate my life sometimes," Yuri said in long suffering tones. Alec rolled his eyes. Death Emperor wished that he could.

"And what's 'the avatar of the night?' " Alec wondered. Yuri looked at him and blinked.

"Excuse me, the what?" he asked.

"Weren't you listening? Oh that's right, hot chick in leather. Forgot about that," Alec replied, rolling his eyes at Yuri's inability to check out a woman and carry a conversation at the same time. "She said for me to look for the avatar of the night."

"She did not," Yuri stated firmly. "I would have remembered something important like that."

_"I'm sure you remember many things about Valentina. The words that came out of her mouth weren't one of them. I suspect though that you could categorically describe her…"_

"Death Emperor!" Yuri said, scandalised. "I was a perfect gentleman!"

_"She asked to stop obviously staring. More than once. You weren't being exactly unobtrusive,"_

"Yeah well, just because you're a disembodied spirit that can't get any,"

_"Like you can talk.__ You're still a child,"_

"Ah, hello?" Alec broke in. "Can we start talking about the avatar thing and not whether Yuri was going to score with Valentina, which co-incidentally he wasn't."

"It's important," Yuri insisted, pouting.

"So's trying to find this avatar thing. And I think that it's slightly more urgent as well," Alec said in a voice that brooked no argument.

_"Let me guess, the Call he's been studiously ignoring concerns this avatar," _Death Emperor commented sardonically.

"I've had this voice in my head telling me to look for an avatar of the night…" Alec began.

_"Bingo," _Death Emperor said gleefully.

"Shut up Death Emperor," Yuri replied absently.

"You know, an exorcism would work wonders," Alec offered.

"Already tried. Kinda blew the church apart. You found me afterwards," Yuri answered, wincing at the fragments of memories that he had of the exorcism.

"Ah, I see," Alec said eventually, not entirely sure what he saw. Surely a fusion soul wouldn't rip a church apart because it was freed. And when he had found Yuri, he looked as if he was tortured, not exorcised. Unless…no, they wouldn't be that stupid to torture a Harmonixer to exorcise his fusion souls, would they?

"Weren't we talking about this voice in your head?" Yuri's voice broke through Alec's thoughts. Alec blinked as he tried to reorientate himself.

"Oh yeah. Well, anyway I think we should try to find it," Alec replied finally. 

_"What's this 'we' business?" _demanded Death Emperor.

"The voice was rather insistent that I find someone 'with a demon in their soul, who's been shattered and no longer whole.' You certainly meet the first requirement, and I have no idea what the second means," Alec said with a tinge of apology in his voice.

_"That 'we' business.__ I hate prophecies," _Death Emperor muttered bitterly.

"I could have sworn I told you to shut up," Yuri said absently, most of his attention focused on Alec.

_"Like I'm going to listen to you.__ Make me," _Death Emperor taunted.

"You have no idea how disconcerting it is to hear you argue with a voice in your head," Alec commented, shaking his head. Yuri shrugged.

"You make it sound like it's unusual. Just because I'm unfortunate to have a talkative fusion soul that _won't shut up_," he replied, wishing that Death Emperor had a physical manifestation so he could give it a death glare. 

_"That's because it is unusual. Usually Harmonixers are stark raving mad after three years of fusing. You're an anomaly," _Death Emperor replied somberly.

"That and you need me to be sane to get an heir," Yuri added.

_"That too," _Death Emperor said cheerfully.

"You are one messed up guy," Alec said with a shake of his head.

"This coming from the person who keeps casting spells that I've never heard of and has no memory of trying to wipe me from the Earth," Yuri retorted.

"That makes me the perfect person to…what? I did what?" Alec did a double take and stared at Yuri with wide eyes.

"That spell you cast, was aimed at me. Or Death Emperor, I'm a little shaky on details," Yuri said depreciatingly. He shrugged.

"Hang on. I cast a spell aimed at you and created a massive crater. You're fine how?" Alec demanded, gesturing toward the crater.

"Hid behind that rock," Yuri said, pointing toward a rather large rock about ten metres away. It was glowing slightly, possibly from the magical backlash.

"Yuri, there were rocks here before," Alec pointed out with a frown. He was unsure what made this rock special.

"Ah okay. I see your point," Yuri replied, pushing himself to his feet. Alec, worried about what Yuri was going to do, rose to his feet ungracefully. At the time, he had no idea why he was so apprehensive about Yuri looking at a rock. In retrospect, he understood perfectly.

The two walked over to the rock and paused when they came close enough to see a rune glowing on it. Glowing purple, it looked rather incongruous on an everyday rock. Yuri extended a hand to touch it. Alec tried to catch his wrist, but wasn't strong enough. Yuri touched the rune and both gasped as magic rushed through them.

_"Not now," _Death Emperor said with a sigh. It was the last thing they heard before the world faded into darkness.

*

When Yuri opened his eyes, it was to the unwelcome sight of the Graveyard.

"I really hate this place," Yuri commented, picking himself off the ground. He looked around in confusion. "Alec? The only sounds were the usual ones of the Graveyard.

Yuri started to wander around the Graveyard. He was sure that he was here for a reason, but he didn't know what.

"Death Emperor? A bit of help here?" he whispered. Unusually enough, there was no response. Yuri's head felt strange, as if there was something missing. "Death Emperor?" he whispered again. When there was no response, Yuri closed his eyes and mentally looked around his head, searching for the acerbic personality that called itself Death Emperor. There was a void where Death Emperor usually was, a raw wound that throbbed constantly. It was as if Death Emperor had been ripped out of his head.

"Little Harmonixer, it has been a while since a Hyuga has fought for their fusion soul. And I have never seen a fusion soul so tightly bound to a Harmonixer. It makes me curious," a disembodied voice whispered in his ear. Yuri shivered.

"What do I do?" he asked aloud. The voice laughed.

"Such impatience! It's all very simple. You and your fusion soul fight. If you win, the fusion soul is yours. If you lose…" the voice trailed off, leaving Yuri's imagination to come up with possible outcomes. Death seemed to be a likely one.

"What about the person who came in with me? Where is he?" Yuri asked softly, not wanted to antagonise the voice.

"He's battling his own demons," the voice replied. "Now, there's an idea. I'll stop his demons, for the moment. If you win, the two of you can walk free. If not, we'll keep the boy as well. It has been a while since we had a captive chimera class," the voice said in a sing-song. Yuri's eyes widened.

Setting his shoulders, he walked toward a glowing tombstone. Biting his lip, he touched the rune carved onto the stone, the same rune that was on the rock. He closed his eyes against a sudden wave of dizziness.

Death Emperor stood before him in all his glory. Yuri shivered. Taking a deep breath, he fell into an attack stance and waited. Death Emperor did the same.

_"You have first strike!" _a baritone hissed in his head. Yuri reacted without thinking, striking Death Emperor with his claws. He jumped back and waited for the counter-strike. Death Emperor lunged at him, and Yuri ducked, with the warning that the voice gave him. He came out of his crouch and attacked Death Emperor again.

"Who are you?" he breathed at the voice, dodging one of Death Emperor's attacks. He moved fluidly and attacked Death Emperor again. Death Emperor crumpled to the ground.

_"Who am I? Not for you to worry about just yet, Yuri. When you're older, you'll understand,"_ the voice replied.

"What?" Yuri asked. The voice disappeared when Death Emperor reappeared in his head, filling the void.

_"Miss me?"_ Death Emperor asked. Yuri didn't respond to that.

"Hey, where's Alec?" he yelled. "I defeated Death Emperor, so where is he?"

"Fighting his demons," the whispering voice replied. 

"What?" Yuri demanded. "You said that you'd stop that!"

"I lied," the voice said cheerfully. "But, because I'm nice, I'll let you help him. He's inside the gate over to your right. Have fun!" Yuri walked quickly toward the gate. As he drew closer, he heard someone screaming. Yuri broke into a run. 

As he entered the gate, he saw Alec, staring at nothing, screaming as if it was the most terrifying thing he had ever seen.

_"It probably is,"_ Death Emperor said seriously. _"Drag him out of here and leave the Graveyard. Now!"_ Yuri grabbed Alec and swung him up into his arms. It was times like these where Yuri was grateful that Alec was as delicately built as he was. Once he had made sure that Alec wasn't going to fall, he ran to the edge of the Graveyard. Making the mental twist required to exit the Graveyard, Yuri jumped through the opening in the boundary, landing heavily on the other side. Alec spilled out of his arms, landing awkwardly on the ground. The impact jolted him back into consciousness and he regarded Yuri with dazed blue eyes.

"That was fun," Alec said finally. Yuri forced a laugh.

"Those aren't quite the words I'd use to describe what just happened. Utterly terrifying, mind shattering, confusing; they're all words I'd use. Fun? No, I don't think so," Yuri replied.

"You're babbling," Alec commented.

"It's a side effect of the fear. Considering that I had to fight Death Emperor to get at you, I believe I'm quite entitled to have been afraid. Which reminds me, what did you see?" Yuri retorted. Alec looked at his feet and said something inaudible.

_"What part of 'most terrifying thing he's ever seen' don't you understand? He won't tell you what he saw; he doesn't really know himself. All he knows is the terror, his heart struggling not to burst with fear, his breath catching painfully in his throat. Eventually it would have killed him. And that, is why non-Harmonixers shouldn't go into the Graveyard, and the Gate of Self in particular," _Death Emperor snapped.

"Why, then can Harmonixers go there?" Yuri asked innocently or, as Death Emperor suspected, stupidly.

_"There's something in your blood, that acts as a shield against the Graveyard. It's also how come you can fuse; you're sensitive to that sort of thing, and strong against the Graveyard. Some people are the reverse. It appears that Master Kerry is one of those,"_ Death Emperor explained in the tones of someone who has explained all too many obvious things recently. 

"There's no need to take that kind of tone with me! Anyway, I'm not talking to you, I'm talking to Alec," Yuri pointed out. "Who is currently ignoring me. A common ailment around here, I suspect." Alec's head shot up and he looked at Yuri guiltily.

"Sorry," Alec apologised. "I can't remember it. Sorry."

"Stop apologising! You've got nothing to be sorry for!" Yuri retorted. "Hey, the sun's setting. What's the deal?"

_"Time passes in the Graveyard. Did you expect time to stand still for you or something?"_ Death Emperor replied.

"That could be useful," Yuri replied ingenuously.

"What could be useful?" Alec wanted to know. "Hearing one side to these conversations is really annoying sometimes."

"If you want, I can give him to you," Yuri offered.

_"Actually, no you can't. I'm bound to your blood. Blame Yuki Hyuga for that,"_ Death Emperor commented.

"Wow, I get a name? Let me guess, the first Harmonixer?" Yuri asked with mock-enthusiasm.

_"No," _Death Emperor said heavily.

"Who was then?" Yuri demanded, hoping for a story. He liked stories, sometimes. 

_"His daughter,"_ Death Emperor answered finally, his voice giving the impression that he wasn't going to say anything more on the subject.

"Hey, if it's all the same with you guys, I'm setting up camp here," Alec interjected, sick of listening to Yuri react to something that only he could hear. Yuri did a double take.

"What? Next to the rock of death?" he asked, eyes wide. Alec shook his head.

_"Ha, ha.__ Very funny. It's not my fault that it happened to be a portal, nor is it my fault that Master Kerry's little temper tantrum set it off," _Death Emperor said, then prepared to do a major sulking session.

"I actually meant in the crater, but now that you mention it…" Alec said, trying to keep the grin off his face.

"Crater is good. I like the crater idea," Yuri said quickly. While there was no grin on Alec's face, Yuri was always suspicious of someone whose mouth was tight around the edges.

"Thought you would," Alec replied complacently. The camp was set up in silence, possibly because it was getting dark and the two wanted to be in the tent before it got really dark.

Authors Note: I actually didn't intent to write another chapter for at least a week, maybe two. Then I got bored and frustrated at Visual Basic (it was written by Microsoft, so that could explain a lot) so I started to write. That, and I was startled by the sheer number of people demanding that Alec live. Honestly, I thought that my OC's suck. Nieh. Alec will be around for a while.

The initial sequence was supposed to be confusing. It will make sense later. Maybe.

Valentina? Yes, she will play a part later on. And not as eye-candy for Yuri either, so the Yuri/Alice or the Yuri/Mary Sue shippers can calm down.

I had the Graveyard scene in there because, well, Yuri should have to fight for his fusion soul. The whispering voice is one of the masks and the other, the one that helped Yuri? I'm not telling. (You can probably guess anyway.) What did Alec see? Can't tell you yet.

And who's Yuki Hyuga? Well I have started my Death Emperor story and his chapter will be written next. So you can find out all about him and his daughter. (Shameless plug, but if I don't do it, who will?)

Thanks go to Gutterfiend, Nat and Greyfriars for reading, reviewing, and saving Alec from being immolated. (Aenea is getting really hard to convince on that issue)


	16. Chapter 16 My creativity has died

Alec and Yuri were hoping for enlightenment the next morning. While the sun did illuminate the sky, it was the enlightenment that they wanted. As a result, they felt rather embarrassed and decided never to speak of the moment again. There were a lot of those moments that morning. Starting when Yuri was awake, rather then just upright.

"Oh my God," Yuri blurted, pointing a shaking finger at the rock that caused them so much grief the previous day. "It's glowing purple!"

"It did that yesterday too," Alec offered mildly. "I think it's going to stay that way."

"But..it's purple! That's just not right!" Yuri continued. He gestured sharply toward the rock, almost taking Alec's head with it. However, this was one of those occasions when being short is a good thing, so Alec was spared the short lived thrill of being decapitated. However, to prevent future accidents, Alec stood up, deciding that he would rather Yuri hitting him in the knee caps instead.

_"You didn't have such a problem with it yesterday,"_ Death Emperor pointed out reasonably. Yuri wasn't in the mood for reason. After all, ranting and raving is so much more fun.

"Yeah, well yesterday. I was in shock yesterday, what with the whole crater forming thing and the fighting you and…that actually happened?" Yuri said in amazement. "I thought that it was my overactive imagination again."

_"If it was your imagination, Valentina would have had a much more prominent role,"_

"Shut up Death Emperor. That reminds me, Alec. What's the deal with the knives?" Alec shrugged eloquently, one eyebrow raised and a slightly bemused expression on his face.

"I have absolutely no idea. And what was that about Valentina? Don't tell me that you're still panting after her." Yuri looked up at Alec (an unusual event in itself) eyes wide and disbelieving. Alec tilted his head to one side in query.

"What?" he asked self-consciously. He moved one foot nervously in the dust and started a serious contemplation of the dust swirls.

"Alec," Yuri said very slowly. "I never said anything about her. Death Emperor did."

"Oh, okay then. Creepy," was Alec's intelligent reply as he looked up from the fascinating view of his shoes. He shrugged nonchalantly. 

_"You're telling me," _Death Emperor commented. Yuri resisted the urge to roll his eyes. If Alec could hear what Death Emperor was saying, the rolling of eyes is not the most mature response.

"Death Emperor, two words. Guess what they are," Yuri said wearily. He folded his arms and waited for the inevitable retort. If anyone was to describe Yuri in one word, it would be masochist.

_"Harmonixers.__ Can't live with them, can't kill them and the resale value's negligible," Death Emperor retorted cheerily. To emphasise his point, Death Emperor blew a raspberry. Yuri gritted his teeth to repress the urge to strangle Death Emperor. Even though it might relieve the stress, Yuri didn't want to kill himself in such a manner. Actually, suicide wasn't on the menu at all. So Yuri resisted his homicidal urges._

"Is he still ranting?" Alec wanted to know. It was Yuri's turn to wear a slightly quizzical look.

"Yeah, can't you hear him?" he asked, frowning. 

"Nope. It must have been a one-off thing," Alec replied with all too much relief for Yuri's liking. It wasn't fair, that Alec only heard Death Emperor once. Yuri had to put up with him twenty four hours a day.

_"Why do I think not?"_ Death Emperor commented, forboding in his tone. 

"Death Emperor…." Yuri warned. 

_"Let me guess, my devastating wit has demolished your oh-so-fragile ego?" _Death Emperor asked hopefully. Yuri did roll his eyes this time.

"Not bloody likely," he retorted, folding his arms and scowling.

_"Oh well. I can try again later,"_ Death Emperor said cheerfully. Yuri sighed. He should have known better, to set Death Emperor a challenge. Now he was doomed to weeks of demoralising comments that only a fusion soul who has taken up permanent residence in your head can provide.

"Is he ever going to shut up?" Alec demanded. Yuri shook his head and opened his mouth. "No, I can't hear him. I'm watching your face change. And the speaking aloud thing is a big giveaway too," Alec said, forestalling Yuri's question.

"So, if all that crazy stuff happened yesterday, what's the Avatar of the Night anyway?" Yuri asked in a blatent attempt to change the subject. Alec, seemingly relieved at the opportunity, shook his head.

_"How about we start with the basics.__ Do you even know what an avatar is?"_ Death Emperor said condescendingly. Yuri gritted his teeth. Alec winced at the visible tension in Yuri's jaw and absently estimated how long it would be before Yuri needed false teeth. Given the sheer number of times that Yuri had gritted his teeth in the past couple of days, Yuri would probably have false teeth by the time he was thirty.

"No, Death Emperor. I don't know what an avatar is. You know why? Because I got lumbered with a fusion soul at ten. A fusion soul who insists that he oh so superior!" Yuri exploded. Alec flinched. 

"Ah Yuri, can you just calm down?" Alec said tentatively, backing away with his hands extended in front of him. "Cause, like losing your temper won't help matters any." Yuri turned his patented death stare onto Alec, who shivered and froze in his position. Yuri's eyes, usually brown, were now illuminated by a golden backlight. The last time Alec had seen that particular effect, Death Emperor had forced a fusion and pounced onto Alec. Alec's eyes went wide and he started to walk backward once again. Then Yuri blinked and the light disappeared from his eyes. He shook his head in a vain attempt to clear the cobwebs from it.

"What?" Yuri asked self-consciously, well aware of Alec's careful gaze. He raised his head slowly, taking in the tension that reverberated throughout Alec's muscles. Alec's expression was a dissettling mixture of awe and fear.

"You went all weird," Alec said finally, proud that his voice didn't shake at all. "It was kinda scary."

"Christ, don't tell me that I let Death Emperor get to me again!" Yuri said in exasperation. "So, what did I do? Head doing the whole spinny thing?" Alec shook his head solemnly. The humour melted from Yuri's face at Alec's serious expression.

"Your eyes changed. Started glowing, like they do when you're about to fuse, I think," Alec said woodenly. He sat down abruptly and looked at Yuri warily. "You weren't there behind your eyes anymore."

"My eyes change?" Yuri asked. "I mean, yeah I knew that something about them were unusual, cause everyone keeps commenting on it. But they glow?"

_"Strange… a refuge and a tormenter,"_ Death Emperor mused. _"Was he right after all?"_

"Was who right after all?" Yuri asked curiously.

_"No-one important.__ Just an idle comment made unconsciously by a man unaware of his strengths,"_ was Death Emperor's cryptic reply.

"What did he say?" Alec asked.

"That someone made some off-hand comment about a refuge and a tormentor. Personally, I think he's completely lost it. What do you think Alec?" Yuri replied. When Alec didn't reply, Yuri looked at Alec closely and noticed that he appeared to be somewhere else. "Alec?" Yuri asked sharply. Alec's head shot up and he shot Yuri a guilty look.

"You know that voice thing? It's back. Reckons that 'heaven and hell coalesce to create purgatory.' Informative, isn't it?" Alec said dryly. "I think that if I'm supposed to solve this blasted riddle, they could at least give me all the clues!"

"Who's 'they'?" Yuri wanted to know.

"You know, they. There's always a they," Alec explained. Yuri shook his head in bemusement.

"Paranoia issues aside, did the voice give you anything informative?" Yuri asked sarcastically. Alec raised his hands in the universal gesture of helplessness.

"Hey, I just listen. I don't think interrogating something that is in my head is quite the way to go. After all, I have no idea what it could do in return," Alec pointed out reasonably.

"I would have done it," Yuri said stubbornly.

_"And that's why we're always in so much trouble,"_ Death Emperor retorted. _"Because to you, impulse control happens to other people."___

"I have impulse control!" Yuri blurted indignantly.

"No, you have self-preservation instincts. The two are entirely different," Alec said sweetly.

"What? They're not?" Yuri replied innocently. "Personally, I've always thought that if you're concentrating on keeping yourself alive, then you tend not to do stupid things."

_"Unfortunately, that's not true in your case,"_ Death Emperor sighed. _"Would make life much simpler."___

"I thought you were dead…or undead. Something like that," Yuri commented.

_"Try 'immortal.' It's a big word, I know, but one day, if you work really hard, you might understand it,"_ Death Emperor said sweetly. 

"You know, we really should buy some mana roots," Alec broke in. "Cause while I'm sure sleeping off magical backlash is fun for _you_, I don't particularly enjoy it." Yuri nodded in agreement, wincing to himself. He had slept it off, once. Never again.

Using the age-old method of packing stuff (shoving it into a bag and kicking it until either something breaks or everything fits) Yuri packed all of his belongings and waited impatiently for Alec. Alec restrung his bow, slung his quiver over his shoulder and stood up, raising one eyebrow at Yuri's impatient pose.

"We can leave now," Alec suggested. Yuri glared at him. Shrugging, Alec started to move away. Startled, Yuri paused for a moment, then ran after him.

Authors Note: Unfortunately, my computer time has been used for programming assignment, rather then important things, like writing. My parents don't quite see it this way, but they're adults and, by definition, should have no idea what I'm on about.

It sounds like nothing has happened in this chapter. Trust me, there has been some important stuff revealed. Honestly! Would I lie to you? (Aenea, stop nodding)

And yes, the bag packing method does work. After years of camping, I should know. 

Also, there have been a few concerns about Valentina's future role in this story. Yuri/Valentina…a scenario I never considered, although it could have possibilities (evil laughter as Night's Mistress revises all plans to include that particular pairing). Also, just to cover all bases, there will be no Yuri/Alec shipping. I can't write decent slash if my life depended on it (although that doesn't seem to stop a lot of people) and that would ruin the dynamic relationship. Also, no Death Emperor/anyone. That's just wrong. That should cover every pairing that I could imagine, apart from the really weird ones. (Yuri/pole - actually I have a true story about that. Email me if you want details.)


	17. Return of the Killer Tomatoes

"Alec, you can't go in there!" Yuri pointed out gesturing to the nearby settlement. He thought that it was reasonable, after all, Alec was warned about not entering nearby villages on pain of death. He folded his arms and looked down disapproving at Alec.

"You can't just leave me out here!" Alec retorted. "Anyway, I doubt that if I'm notorious, the kid that turned into a 'demon' wouldn't be."

"That's my point!" Yuri replied. "They'll be looking for two teenaged boys, not just one."

"That's stupid," Alec said disdainfully. "I can cast a illusion over the two of us, but only if I'm there. Otherwise, it won't last long, and knowing our luck, it'll collapse at the most inconvenient moment." Alec folded his arms tensely and glared at Yuri through his eyelashes. "You're going to have to take me with you." Yuri rolled his eyes.

"Fine, whatever," he said in the tones of a practiced martyr. "Just if that illusion falls, be prepared to run for it." Alec nodded, repositioning his quiver on his shoulder.

"Oh, and that reminds me," Yuri commented, watching as the quiver slid down Alec's shoulder to it's previous position. "We should look into getting you a backpack of your own. You can't keep borrowing my stuff all the time." It was Alec's turn to put on the suffering tone.

"It wasn't exactly my fault that I didn't get a chance to pack anything. I don't think that you really can pack anything for the afterlife. Anyway, how on Earth did you manage to get my bow and quiver?" Yuri looked at him sheepishly.

"To be totally honest, I haven't a clue. Must have been one of those instinctive things, you know?" he shrugged.

"Couldn't you have instinctively packed a backpack for me as well?" Alec asked innocently, opening his eyes very wide and blinking.

"No, that would imply that I had the faintest idea what was going to happen," Yuri replied calmly.

__

"Anyone with half a brain could have worked it out," Death Emperor said snidely.

"Shut up Death Emperor," Yuri replied wearily. 

"Good call," Alec commented. Yuri looked at him in surprise.

"What? Hear that?" he blurted. Alec laughed.

"No. Your face is very expressive," he replied innocently. Yuri made a face at that comment.

"Damn," was his eloquent reply. Alec repressed a grin at Yuri's woe-be-gone expression.

"You could say that," he said soothingly. "Personally, I find it rather amusing."

__

"Can we go yet?" Death Emperor whined. Yuri was struck with a mental image of Death Emperor folding his arms; pouting and stamping his foot in a time honoured manner utilised by toddlers worldwide.

"You bored?" he asked, raising one eyebrow. Alec really wished that he could hear the other half of the conversation.

__

"About a millennia ago. Get the damn roots and lets get going!" Death Emperor shouted. Yuri winced and clapped his hands over his ears. He lowered them sheepishly as he realised that covering his ears would have no effect.

"Death Emperor's getting a little anxious," he offered in explanation. Alec nodded sagely, then made an intricate gesture with both hands. Yuri blinked in confusion as Alec was replaced with someone about a foot taller, with black hair and brown eyes.

"What?" he asked stupidly. The stranger frowned, then grinned wryly. He whispered something and Alec reappeared.

"Sorry about that. Forgot to include you in the spell," he explained, looking apologetic. Yuri shrugged and walked toward the village. Alec growled then ran after him.

The village was very quiet, with no one on the streets at all. It was unnerving. Yuri kept looking around for monsters, riots and other possible causes of the quiet. He couldn't find any. Alec looked equally disturbed.

"I think that's the shop over there," Alec whispered, pointing to a house with a wooden sign hanging from the eaves. Yuri nodded.

"Is it just me, or is this creepy," Yuri replied quietly.

"This is creepy," Alec whispered. "Let's just get the roots and get the hell out of here." Yuri nodded in agreement as Alec walked toward the store. He watched as Alec grabbed the door handle and struggled with opening the door. Walking silently he headed toward the preoccupied Alec.

"You should try turning the handle," he whispered in Alec' ear. Alec jumped and whirled around. Realising that it was only Yuri, he glared at him.

"Do you mind? This place is creepy enough as it is!" he said angrily. Yuri shrugged.

"Death Emperor told me to do it," he replied innocently. Alec rolled his eyes and turned back to the door. He gestured with his hands, presumably releasing the illusion spell. Yuri frowned, wondering what Alec sensed that he didn't.

__

"I did not! If I tell you to do anything, it's for a good reason. And my jokes are funny, not like your infantile imitations," Death Emperor retorted, aggrieved. Yuri snorted, his reveille broken.

"I remember vividly the Castle Incident. Would you like me to remind you?" he replied calmly. Death Emperor made an incoherent noise. Yuri smirked.

"Well that's him dealt with. Now the door. What's up with it?" Alec ignored him. He was looking at the door; head tilted on one side and eyes half closed.

"Alec?" Yuri asked. Alec jumped. Yuri giggled. Death Emperor sighed.

"Oh sorry. Got caught up there. Someone's sealed the door," Alec replied absently. Yuri waited for more. When none was forthcoming, he tapped Alec on the shoulder.

"Can we break the seal?" he asked as Alec turned around, eyes wide.

"Um, the seal. I can't. Could you have a look?" His voice was distracted and Yuri got the distinct impression that Alec was looking at something that Yuri couldn't see. Yuri sighed heavily and squinted at the door. He could see the seal, which was a malevolent thing, seemingly throbbing in time to….something. Struck by an impulse, Yuri reached up and measured the pulse at his throat and nodded when his suspicions were confirmed. He reached out a hand and touched the centre of the seal. A wave of flame ran up his arm. Startled, he fused partially with Death Emperor. The fire disappeared as quickly as it formed and the seal fell away. Yuri shivered.

"That was weird," he commented finally, ignoring Death Emperor's ravings about being used so nonchalantly without his permission. It wasn't as if Death Emperor ever asked his permission before he used Yuri. 

"You're telling me," Alec said fervently. He reached out and turned the doorknob, which moved jerkily. Yuri reached out and grabbed his wrist.

"Do you smell something?" he asked urgently. Alec nodded.

"There's no monsters. I would have noticed," he replied. Yuri nodded, but still placed his claws on his hands in preparation. Alec pulled an arrow out of his quiver and opened the door with his spare hand. 

As one, Alec and Yuri gagged as the smell assaulted them. 

"Hello? Anyone here?" Alec called. Yuri grabbed his wrist again. 

"I don't think anyone's going to answer you," he said faintly, gesturing toward the shadows. Alec gasped as the portent of Yuri's words caught up with him and he rushed inside. He knelt down at the back of the house and made a choked sound in the back of his throat. Yuri walked inside the house and dragged Alec forcibly outside. Alec didn't resist.

Once outside, Alec threw up, messily and all over Yuri's shoes.

__

"Distasteful," commented Death Emperor mildly. Yuri sighed philosophically.

"That was disgusting," he commented, gesturing at his shoes. Alec retched again. Once that was over with, he looked up at Yuri, smiling wanly.

"I hardly think vomit really compares to what we've just seen," he pointed out. "Did you see that poor man?" Yuri's eyes widened.

"You could identify its gender? I had problems with working out the species!" Alec laughed, a slightly hysterical sound. Yuri contemplated hitting him, then decided that hitting him might not be a good idea. He had had enough of the super-powerful annihilation spells for this year, thank you very much. 

__

"Drag it outside, into the light," Death Emperor demanded. Yuri shook his head resolutely as he shivered.

"Not bloody likely," he replied. "Did you even see it! I am not touching it!"

__

"Drag it out into the light, because we need to see what killed it," Death Emperor insisted. Yuri shook his head again.

"His heart stopped. Next question?"

__

"Look, just do it!" Death Emperor snapped. Yuri, realising a futile argument when he heard it, directed his attention to Alec, who was not looking particularly happy.

"Death Emperor wants us to drag the corpse out here. Supposedly we're going to do an autopsy," Yuri explained, grimacing as he did so.

"Fun," was Alec's reply as his face twisted. "It's times like these that I wish that you had arranged for an exorcism." Yuri ignored him as he headed into the house. Alec looked torn, then followed.

The two grabbed the body and dragged it into the light, consciously ignoring the feel of the cold flesh on their fingers. Death Emperor chivvied them to hurry up with it and Yuri contemplated exorcism.

The corpse didn't look any better in the light. With the gaping rent in it's chest, it looked like something had ripped out the heart, blood sheathed the naked torso, arms and face and fragments of the ribcage seemed to be everywhere, glued to it's skin by the tacky blood. Other then the shattered ribcage, the corpse seemed intact, although it was hard to tell under the gore.

"_Now that is tasteful…artistic almost,"_ Death Emperor stated. Yuri ignored him.

"I repeat, you were able to identify gender how?" Yuri asked, turning to Alec, who was kneeling a short distance away. Alec, who had closed his eyes quite some time ago, replied "Magic. Has markers on it for gender." His breathing was heavy, as if trying to fight back nausea. Yuri wondered vaguely why he wasn't suffering like Alec was.

__

"I repressed it. I need you here, not throwing up in some corner," Death Emperor said smugly. _"Now roll the corpse over. I need to see something."_ Yuri rolled the corpse over, teeth gritted. He gasped as the hole in the back of the corpse's skull was revealed. He rolled the corpse onto its back and sat on his haunches.

"So, Death Emperor. Got any suggestions?" he asked tonelessly. 

__

"Not as of yet," Death Emperor replied. Yuri stared at the corpse. He had no idea what kind of animal would only eat the heart and brain but not touch the rest.

__

"I know that the heart and brain weren't eaten though," Death Emperor added. Yuri jerked. _"Brain and heart. Heart and mind, the two components of the soul. But why would a monster make such a symbolic gesture of something purely instinctive like killing for food?"_

"Yuri, get back!" Alec yelled. Startled, Yuri jumped to his feet and stepped a few paces away. His eyes widened as the corpse sat up and looked at him.

"Hi Yuri," the corpse rasped. "Are you fourteen yet? Because you promised to marry me then." Yuri stumbled backward. "Sasha isn't much fun anymore. It's hard to play with a skeleton. But you… you'll be fun still, right? Or maybe," the corpse turned it's head and looked at Alec. "Your little friend here will know some new games. What's his name?" Alec paled. Yuri seemed incapable of speech. The corpse redirected its gaze at Yuri.

__

"Now this is interesting," said Death Emperor in a tone of mild amusement. _"Nice of her to make an appearance. I was wondering when she would. Took her time, don't you think?"_

Yuri ignored him again. He was too busy staring in bewilderment at the corpse who called him by name and made reference to some past event that he vaguely remembered. He shied mentally away from that thought. He really didn't want to remember where he had heard those words before.

"Have you accepted your destiny yet, last Harmonixer? After all, it was your cowardice that condemned me." The corpse staggered upright, lurching toward Yuri, who could only stare wide eyed at its approach.

"Get thee gone, Darkness!" Alec shouted from behind the corpse. The corpse collapsed, struggled to rise then lay still.

"Yuri, your little pet seems quite the magician. But remember, I'll be waiting!" The corpse disintegrated into powder. Alec swallowed audibly, then looked at Yuri. He was white faced, with his eyes impossibly wide and blank, staring at the corpse. Alec rushed over and grabbed Yuri's elbow. Shaking him vigorously, Alec yelled Yuri's name.

"He won't respond. He's too scared," Yuri said finally. Alec frowned at the usage of the third person. "Get him out of here before she comes back."

"She?" Alec asked. Yuri nodded, a surprising brisk movement. Alec nodded as the pieces fell into place.

"Alright Death Emperor," he acquiesced as he dragged Yuri's unresponsive body out of the village. Almost outside the village he paused, letting go of Yuri's elbow. Struck by an impulse, he ran into the open house, grabbed the stock and shoved it into a backpack, reasoning to himself that if he didn't take it, someone else would and he needed it more. 

Racing back to Yuri, he dragged him away from the village to the south. The next half hour was a blur of tree branches, roots and the constant dragging of someone who was significantly larger then Alec. Once he reached a clearing, he let go of Yuri and forced him to sit down.

"Yuri? I need to talk to you! Who was that?" Alec demanded. Yuri stared blankly at Alec, then blinked. 

"I think I know her," he said slowly. Alec growled deep in his throat.

"Who is she, then? Both you and Death Emperor think it's a she, you both seem to know her. Ask Death Emperor!" Yuri closed his eyes. Alec reached forward and shook him violently.

"I wouldn't bother. He won't wake. Leave him alone," Death Emperor replied, using Yuri as a mouthpiece once again. "And who is she? Yuri will tell you when he wakes up. If he remembers that is. And that will be a while, so I'd set up a tent if I were you. She won't find him just yet." Alec pulled out the tent and set it up, mind numb. Once the tent was set up, he dragged Yuri inside and shoved him into the sleeping bag, disconcerted by his lax limbs, which felt remarkably similar to the limp ones of the corpse. He crawled into his recently acquired sleeping bag (rather then the pink fluffy blanket that he had been using recently) and curled into a ball, staring wide eyed into the darkness.

Authors Note: Bet you didn't see that one coming! Any takers for who it was? I gave you _heaps _of clues! And yes, you have seen her before. And yes, the pink fluffy blanket is the one that Catherine gave him. Isn't continuity brilliant! (grin)

I _intended_ to take a sabbatical from Yuri and Death Emperor for a while, until I had done my exams. Imagine my indignation when I was roused from my Laplace Transforms by a five-foot tall bird-boned blond who insisted in me continuing. Stupid Alec. Must remember to devise long torture scene for him (just kidding!). The "Get thee gone, Darkness" line came from Vagrant Story, which I highly recommend people who liked Shadow Hearts (which would be all of you I assume?) to play. It's equally morbid, with animated corpses, wannabe gods and all that good stuff. It also has a convoluted plot line and Ashley Riot kicks ass. It's a PSX game though, so it might be hard to find. That line happens to be my favourite line if you're interested.

The reason why I keep pushing Kingdom Hearts is purely altruistic. Looking at ff.net, there is no good Kingdom Hearts fanfic, and I want to read some. It was a good game and deserves better then the teenaged fangirl writing a cliched story entirely of netspeak. While I am sure that there are some decent stories in that section, I am overwhelmed by the sheer number of teenyboppers with an inability to use the dictionary or to pass a basic English test.

I'm glad that everyone acknowledges that initially Yuri came across as an oversexed jerk. Trust me on that, I'm surrounded by over four hundred of them at uni. And that Yuri/Pole story? I might write that one either during my holidays or on a train.

In conclusion? Play Vagrant Story or Kingdom Hearts, listen to Queensryche or Paul Gilbert (my inspiration - listen and you'll understand) and may your fanfics never be flamed. 


	18. THE chapter you'll understand once you'...

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"Remember me?" a childish voice asked. Yuri whirled around, expecting to see Fox-Face.

"What do you wa…hey! Who the hell are you?" he snarled at the small girl. She played nervously with one of her braids and looked at him with reproachful eyes and trembling bottom lip. This look, coupled with her yellow sundress, made her look like the epitome of a child. Yuri was instantly suspicious.

"Don't you remember me?" she asked tearfully. Yuri shook his head warily. "Why not?!" she demanded her face twisting. Yuri stepped backwards in surprise. She stepped forward, closing the distance. Yuri thought hysterically of the absurdity of being intimidated by a small child and fought back the urge to laugh aloud.

"Alex and Yuri went out to play, over the hills and far away. When the sky goes from blue to black, little Alex won't come back," she sang.

"Who's Alex?" he asked finally.

"Sasha died so you replaced him with Alex," she screamed, face contorting with rage. Yuri's response was to blink in confusion.

"Look little girl, I haven't a clue what you're going on about. Who's this Alex or Sasha person you're ranting about?" he replied mildly.

"Alex is that magician you befriended," she spat. Yuri's eyes widened as realisation dawned. He opened his mouth to correct the girl about Alec's name when he was shaken vigorously.

"What was that for?" he complained, pouting. Alec looked unimpressed.

"You've slept for almost twelve hours," Alec replied tonelessly. That probably explained why it was almost sunset. "Now I want some answers. Who was she?"

"Who was who?" Yuri replied in confusion. Alec sighed in frustration.

"That person who possessed the corpse. Who was she?" Yuri shook his head.

"I don't know," he replied.

__

"Her name was Clara," Death Emperor supplied.

"Clara?" Yuri asked. "I don't know a Clara."

__

"You did. Clara and Sasha were childhood friends of yours," Death Emperor replied. Yuri shook his head in denial.

__

"Clara was a Soul Well that went mad," Death Emperor continued relentlessly. _"She died when the souls overwhelmed her. And do you know why they were there?"_ Yuri shook his head again. 

__

"Because you were," Death Emperor whispered.

"Yuri, who is Clara?" Alec demanded.

"Was," Yuri corrected absently. The significance of that correction was not lost on Alec.

"She's dead. Then how? How's she doing this? Murdering whole villages? Seems pretty spry for a corpse."

__

"Her powers as a Soul Well matured at twelve," Death Emperor explained. Yuri dutifully relayed the information to Alec.

"And a Soul Well is?" he asked, motioning for Yuri to continue.

"Someone with empathy for the dead," Yuri replied absently, eyes unfocused. "Can do all sorts of weird things. Eats dispossessed human souls."

"Yuri," Alec said slowly. "How do you know all this?" Yuri blinked and his eyes focused on Alec.

"Know what?" Yuri asked, genuinely confused.

"You just rattled off some stuff about a talent that, until today, I'd never even heard of," Alec replied.

__

"I told Alec, through you. I seem to be doing it a lot. Tell him that you read it in that book of yours," Death Emperor suggested.

"Must have read it somewhere. Probably that book I keep dragging around. It's certainly big enough," Yuri complained.

"Can I see it?" Alec asked. Yuri pulled a tome out of his bag and handed it silently to him. Alec opened the book and grimaced. 

"Russian, urk!" He waved his hand. "French," he said in tones of great satisfaction. "Much better."

__

"Actually the book has a spell on it. He just had to close it and open it again and the contents get re-written into a language that he could understand," Death Emperor commented in amusement.

"You can read French?" Yuri asked in tones of great surprise. He ignored Death Emperor's comments with the ease of long practise.

"Better than Russian," Alec replied, looking up from the book and grinning. "Now shut up or go away. I'm reading." Yuri took that as a subtle hint to go somewhere else for a while.

Muttering to himself, Yuri slouched away from their temporary campsite. Hearing the faint sound of running water, he headed toward it. He slumped down by the side of the creek and trailed his fingers in the water.

"Death Emperor?' Yuri asked suddenly. "Who, or what is the Avatar of the Night?" Death Emperor was strangely silent. "Alright then. Why is Clara still alive - sort of?"

__

"You can't kill a Soul Well. You contain them," Death Emperor replied heavily.

"How?" Yuri demanded.

__

"Like I'd know. It's only ever been done once before." Pause. _"Before you ask, no I wasn't there, not were any of my line."_

"Then how do you know it's been done before?"

__

"Because I have seen the container. So have you," Death Emperor replied finally. Yuri thought frantically of magical places that he and Death Emperor had seen. 

"The Graveyard," Yuri said tonelessly.

__

"Well done!" Death Emperor said patronising.

"And the Avatar of the Night?" Yuri continued.

__

"A Soul Well," Death Emperor replied. Yuri counted to ten and found that it was lacking in numbers. He clenched his fists, barely noticing as his fingernails cut into his skin.

"How long have you known?" he asked, voice deceptively quiet. Death Emperor didn't answer. "How long?!" he shouted.

__

"A long time," Death Emperor answered. Yuri gritted his teeth and stared at the setting sun. Falling into a trance, he was startled as a scream rang through the air.

"When the sky turns from blue to black, little Alex won't come back!" he exclaimed, then swore. Ignoring Death Emperor's admonishments for his use of language, he ran the short distance back to their campsite.

An animated corpse had Alec around the head, hands positioned to break his neck. Alec's eyes were wide, red and swollen and he kept mouthing something at Yuri.

"Let him go, Clara!" Yuri yelled. The corpse giggled and let Alec go. 

"You remember me now?" the corpse rasped. Yuri repressed a shiver.

"Yes Clara. I remember you. And I will marry you," Yuri began. His brain finally worked out what Alec was trying to say. 

"But I've got to kiss you first," Yuri continued. The corpse's eyes widened in surprise and Alec shuddered in revulsion. The corpse shuffled gracelessly toward Yuri, who swallowed audibly.

"Do I make you sick?" the corpse rasped. Yuri shook his head.

"No, no, Clara. Just nervous," he replied. The corpse stopped in front of him. He leaned forward and kissed it.

He tried not to flinch as the smelt rotting flesh. He tried not to whimper as the corpse's face grew closer and he fought the urge to scream as cold, rancid flesh made contact with his own.

When he felt Alec's hand on his shoulder, Yuri closed his eyes and threw the three of them into the Graveyard.

*

Yuri opened his eyes to Alec screaming. He pulled out one of his claws, sliced his arm open and forced the blood to flow into Alec's mouth. Alec swallowed convulsively and stopped screaming immediately. He looked at Yuri in bewilderment. Yuri removed his hand from Alec's mouth.

"Death Emperor said something about protections in blood, so I thought it was worth a shot," Yuri explained depreciatingly. He pulled a Thera root out of his pocket and chewed it grimly. "Chewy," he commented. The cut on his arm closed, leaving only the bloodstains to show that it had ever existed.

"Did you ever read that book you lent me?" Alec demanded. Yuri shook his head, then brightened. 

"I read part of it!"

"_The parts that contained sex or gratuitous violence,"_ pointed out Death Emperor. 

"I meant all of it. Seriously, there is some fascinating stuff in there…" Alec shook his head in amazement. "Anyway, there was a chapter on Soul Wells. Supposedly they are a variant of harmonixer, but that's not important. There was a spell to create a container for an insane Soul Well."

"Cool," Yuri commented. "What's the catch?"

"It's a very powerful spell, involving both of us. We've got to paint some sigils onto ourselves with the other's blood, recite a chant and hope we live through it," Alec replied sombrely. "And we've got to decide soon. Clara will be able to tear the Graveyard apart eventually, and I have no idea what that'll do to you."

"Is it really that bad?" Yuri asked. Alec's expression was sufficient. "I take that as a yes. Alright I'm for it."

Five minutes later, Yuri wrinkled his nose as Alec daubed some of his blood across the bridge of his nose. Alec glared at him and Yuri relaxed the muscles in his face. Alec moved a finger down the length of his nose, then removed his hand from Yuri's face.

"Right, we're done," Alec said cheerfully, his manner contrasting with the slightly maniacal look the blood-runes gave him. He paused for a moment, looking at Yuri pensively. Yuri smiled uneasily, then waved a hand in front of Alec's face.

"We should start now," Yuri said reluctantly. Alec studied him, then looked down, letting his hair fall over his face, obscuring his expression. Still looking down, he reached out blindly and grabbed Yuri's hands.

Yuri would be hard pressed later to describe what they chanted. All he remembered was his blood burning under his skin and his wellspring slipping in and out of his fingers. Hearing a scream, he forced open eyes that he didn't realise he had closed and almost broke free from the circle when he saw that Alec was becoming translucent. Alec's hands tightened painfully on his own, forcing him to keep the circle intact.

He felt a wrench inside himself, as if something was trying to rip his magic from him. He gasped as his magic disappeared into a void. The size of the emptiness to be filled dismayed him and he nearly cried. Neither he nor Alec had enough magic to fill it on their own.

__

A young red haired psychic and her son stood as if transfixed in the alleyways of London….

A young Swiss girl looked into starlight and was lost in the light….

An Adept shoved his hand into a fire, breathing "It's his son,"…

An adolescent girl threw herself into the river…

An aristocratic man was buried alive under rubble….

A small boy fell into a dark chasm….

Yuri gasped as a wave of magic swept through him, rushing to fill the void. Dimly he noticed that Alec wasn't screaming any more. He couldn't feel Alec's hands either, but couldn't work up the energy to care. He closed his eyes and felt himself fall.

Unfortunately for Yuri, his unconsciousness was short lived. Someone was shaking him violently, screaming out his name. He opened his eyes slowly.

"Don't you dare die on me yet!" a blurry figure shouted. With extreme effort, Yuri focused his eyes and blinked dazedly at an androgynous, luminescent figure. Clothed in white, wearing a uniquely beautiful face, all that was missing was the huge wings.

"Who're you?" he demanded hoarsely. The figure laughed.

"I'm hurt! Don't you recognise me? You've only known me for about six years," it teased.

"Death Emperor?" Yuri breathed.

"You were expecting someone else?" Death Emperor replied.

"Where's Alec?" Death Emperor looked away.

"I'll tell you later. Get out of here!" Death Emperor ordered. Yuri sketched a salute and disappeared. Five other beings came up behind Death Emperor, capturing his arms and legs. Death Emperor made no effort to resist.

"Death Emperor, soul of loathing, you are hereby banished to your gravestone until a hearing can be arranged."

*

Yuri opened his eyes and shuddered. He was extremely grateful that the corpse wasn't there any more. He looked around and found Alec lying, pale and still, on the ground.

"We did it," Yuri croaked. Alec didn't stir. Yuri's exhausted brain assembled some facts; that he was out of the graveyard, Alec was not and neither was Death Emperor. Slightly anxious, Yuri crawled over and felt for Alec's pulse. There was none. A breeze rustled some pages in Yuri's book and he glanced down. By co-incidence, it opened on the section on Soul Wells, in particular, their containment. Yuri stared in shock at the following lines; 'Should this be successful, the sacrifice offered by the Chimera class will be accepted.'

"Yuri?" a small voice asked. "It's Sasha." Yuri passed out.

Authors Note: Don't hurt me! Alec's death has been planned for quite some time. It did happen for a reason, sort of. It's hard to explain in a note, and will be explained in detail next chapter. Maybe. If the Death Emperor and the seven magi sacrifices plot lines don't take over. The Alec/Alex thing came about because I kept mixing the two up, and decided that Clara would have the same problem.

Also, I have inserted myself into the story. Who am I? I can be any gender or age, so take a guess!

And I do apologise for the cliffhanger. I will update!


	19. Explanations sort of

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"Yuri, I'm sorry," the small boy said softly. Yuri fought back the urge to cry. Turning around slowly his eyes widened as his suspicions were confirmed. Inquisitive brown eyes stared back at him from under a thatch of unruly dark brown hair. He raised a hand and ran it through his hair, pushing it to new levels of disorganisation. Yuri bit his lip.

"You can't be Sasha," Yuri replied softly. The boy tilted his head to one side. "Sasha's dead."

"And so I am," the boy replied. He grinned, a quicksilver flash of white teeth. "Hasn't stopped me yet!" The grin melted from his face, leaving a sombre expression. "However, there is so much I must tell you."

Yuri sat down suddenly. An observer might had commented on the abruptness of this action, suggested that he had sat down in order not to pass out. Sasha was kind enough not to.

"Firstly, what happened to Clara was not your fault, so stop flagellating yourself over it," Sasha said seriously. 

"Christ, I'm being psychoanalysed by my subconscious. What's next, raving about the end of the world to a stuffed raven?" Yuri replied bitterly.

"I'm not a figment of your imagination!" Sasha replied, stamping his foot. "I'm really Sasha!"

"Yeah," Yuri replied sceptically. "Like Sasha knew the word 'flagellating.' Hell, I don't know what the word means!"

"To scourge," Sasha replied absently, eyes unfocused. "The Macquarie Dictionary, 1995." Yuri blinked, whether at the definition or the date was unsure. His next statement clarified matters.

"1995? Considering that it's 1907 now, that's a bit far-fetched." Sasha blinked and smiled reassuringly.

"Sorry, I do that sometimes. Comes with the talent, I'm afraid." Seeing Yuri's blank expression, Sasha clarified with "I'm a prophet."

"A what?" Yuri blurted, feeling stupid once he realised what he had said. 

"A prophet. It makes sense when you think about it really. After all, we were destined to defeat a man that calls himself Roger Bacon," Sasha replied off-hand. Yuri blinked. Sasha laughed at Yuri's stunned expression.

"Should start at the beginning, shouldn't I? Okay, firstly your father was not supposed to be killed when you were ten. Instead, what was supposed to happen was you would receive a different fusion soul and your father was to train you in Harmonixing. He was supposed to die…about now. You'd travel with your mother to Vladivostok, where you would meet a prophet and a Soul Well, both fully trained. When your father died six years too early, this all went out the window.

"Anyway, once Clara went mad - which was not your fault, no matter what anyone has told you, that was a threat that had to be neutralised. And when she killed me, that really threw the fates for a loop." Sasha chuckled. "So, a Chimera class had to be found to trap her. That's where Alec came in. If you had asked him when he first lost control of his powers, you might have noticed that it was at the same time as I died - no coincidence there. Initially, he was not supposed to be used like that. He was to defeat some Adept, I forget his name, leaving our way clear to defeat Bacon." Sasha sighed. "We would have been unstoppable, the three of us. A true triumvirate of power. No matter."

"How do you know all this?" Yuri demanded, anguished. Sasha shrugged. "And, if you're dead, how are you talking to me?"

"That one I can answer. Clara's doing this. Don't worry though, this is the last time. She can't do it for long either," Sasha replied. "So, if you desperately need to ask something, now's the time."

"I could have sworn that you weren't a prophet," Yuri said slowly, mouth feeling as if it was made of wood.

"When you knew me, I wasn't. All latent then. However, violent acts can awaken it prematurely, and what's more violent then death?"

"Prove it," Yuri taunted. Sasha shrugged.

"Alright. Sometime in the future, you'll have to make a choice. A woman's soul depends on the right decision. Choose wisely," Sasha replied. Yuri's eyebrows raised to his hairline.

"That's a prophecy? What about the thee's and thou's and all that crap? And could you be a bit more specific?" Yuri demanded. Sasha shook his head.

"I don't use the thee's and thou's. Nor the riddles or the other crutches that other prophets used. I don't need to, as I'm dead and can't be pestered by morons who want to know whether they'll marry the cowgirl next door and all that. And I got a impression that it's within the next ten years." Sasha grinned impishly. "Hope that helps."

"Well, no, it doesn't," Yuri replied petulantly. "What good's a prophecy when the only time you know if it's right or not is after the fact?"

"Good huh?" Sasha retorted. "But I assure you, this will happen. It's a pity you won't remember this. No, don't object! The only reason you remember me at the moment is because your memory block was lifted during that spell. Eventually it'll come back. Which if you ask me, is a good thing at the moment. You're teetering too close to the abyss."

Sasha stared into the distance. "And you have to wake up now. There's a seeker looking for you and Alec. I don't think you want to be buried alive, do you?"

"Oh," Yuri replied. "How do I do that?"

"Just fall asleep." 

"Don't you dare to be dead," an irate female voice commented, shaking Yuri violently.

"Stop that," he complained. "I might have internal injuries." The shaking stopped. 

"Obviously you don't. Didn't the boy use the knives?" the voice demanded. Yuri's foggy brain finally put a name to a face.

"No. Should he have?" he asked vaguely.

"Yes! It would have stopped him dying! He didn't need that spell, just needed to touch the Soul Well with the knives!" Valentina shouted in frustration. Yuri wearily closed his eyes.

"Could have said so earlier, when it would have helped," he reproached. Valentina contemplated punching him, but decided that it wouldn't be a good idea. 

*

The adolescent girl floundered under the water, desperately clawing through the water to reach the surface. Her lungs burned with the need for air, and she fought not to open her mouth. Unfortunately, instinct won over mind and her mouth opened involuntarily. Water filled her mouth and lungs. It was strangely peaceful, this drifting, she thought to herself. She no longer struggled. Her last thought was of the two boys trying to accomplish the impossible. She hoped they succeeded, and didn't shame her sacrifice. 

*

Alice opened her eyes partially and closed them quickly against the glare from the sun. She opened them again and looked around. She was in her parents' garden, lying on her back on the grass. She pushed herself upright onto her elbows and shook her head. Everything seemed to have a strange luminescence to it, as if she was looking at the world through starlight.

__

"Little girl, come out to play?" a rasping voice whispered in the wind that teased her hair. She craned her head, searching for the speaker. _"It's been so long since someone heard me…." _Alice's eyes widened.

"I'm sorry, but I can't see you," she pointed out.

__

"That's alright. We'll play a game of hide and seek. I'll hide and you'll seek," the voice replied. _"And if you don't find me quick enough, I get to hold something you hold dear hostage."_ Alice gasped, pushed herself to her feet and ran for her father.

__

"Run, little girl. I'll find you in the end…." the spirit whispered, as substantial as the breeze.

*

Koudelka blinked rainwater from her eyes and looked around dazedly at the familiar alleyways of London. Raking her hand through her hair, she turned and looked down at her son Halley.

"Come on, let's go home," she suggested. Halley didn't respond. Concerned, she knelt down in front of him and examined him closely. His eyes were far away, presumably looking at the same thing that she had been. Koudelka frowned for a moment, then shook Halley's shoulder. Halley didn't shake off her hand, nor did his eyes loose the faraway cast. Biting her bottom lip in anxiety, Koudelka looked around nervously and cast a simple healing spell. Still no response. Halley was still caught up in something. 

Scooping him up, Koudelka walked quickly back to their current hideout.

*

"Look, you have to free me! The world depends on it!" Death Emperor ranted in his cage. The two masks standing guard didn't look particularly impressed. Admittedly, it's hard for a carved piece of wood to look impressed, but these masks took their innate indifference to a new level.

"I demand my right to a hearing!" Death Emperor continued.

"Trust me, everyone can hear you," an amused female voice replied out of Death Emperor's line of sight.

"Nice to know that my efforts are not being ignored. Although, do you reckon you could use your influence here Amon?" Death Emperor replied. Amon made a non-committal noise.

"I can bring the hearing forward, yes. Get you let off, no," she replied slowly. "And what's so urgent anyway? Your host isn't going anywhere at the moment. He'll be catatonic for a while yet." Death Emperor groaned in exasperation, slid down into a crouching position and buried his head in his hands.

"That ritual wasn't finished. There's still some elements that I didn't get a chance to return," he rasped, voice muffled by his fingers. "And if I don't return them, I don't know if they ever will go back." Death Emperor sighed. "I just don't know how to solve this, Amon."

"Why such concern toward your host? I remember vividly a time when you used to find it amusing to torment them," Amon asked, genuinely curious. Death Emperor shook his head.

"We need this one. You have no idea how desperate our situation is. He is the last, and the Judge is coming," Death Emperor replied, voice resigned. "The Judge will come in this one's lifetime, it has been foretold. And if he is not sane and ready for it, we will all perish and the world torn asunder."

"Very poetic," Amon commented. "And how do you know this to be true?"

"A forked prophecy. You know that the Hyuga line occasionally throws one up. This one is the omega."

"I see," Amon said thoughtfully. "I should be able to bring the hearing forward. After that, you're on your own."

*

__

"It is time…" a voice whispered. Yuri spun around. 

"Time for what?" he demanded. A piece of what looked to be a jigsaw puzzle fell at his feet.

"For you to piece it all together."

"Piece what?" Yuri asked. The voice was silent. Yuri shrugged and picked up the piece. It was small and had a picture on it. Yuri brought it closer to his face, to see it clearly. A dark-haired woman stared out at him with sad dark eyes. Yuri frowned at the resemblance between her facial structure and his own. He flipped the piece over and read what was on the back.

"Katerina Milovitch?" he read aloud, confused. That name sparked a memory, but it was one so intangible that it darted out of his mental fingers. Yuri shrugged and moved on. He wandered aimlessly, letting his feet take him where they willed. A picture lying on the ground caught his eye. Picking this up, he noticed that it was of a girl with a sky-jump nose and auburn hair. 

"Juliet," he read aloud. Yet another memory was freed from its prison. Yuri absently reached out and rubbed the scars on his back.

*

Zhuzhen quickly pulled his hand out of the flame and watched as the burns healed. He rubbed his hand with his spare, trying to relieve the ache that always happened after he used his skills for healing. After all, healing was not what his discipline was about. He grinned wryly as recent events caught up with him.

After Ben Hyuga died, Zhuzhen travelled to where Ben had told him that his wife and child lived in an attempt to make amends for using Ben in such a manner. When he arrived, he saw the aftermath of a battle, with dismembered body parts everywhere. He managed to recognise Anne, but had despaired of Yuri, believing him to be a collection of the smaller, indistinguishable parts. 

Six years is a long time to live with guilt. He had given up his studies, believing it to be a sufficient sacrifice in Ben's name. He had become a recluse, refusing to show his face to the outside world. As a result, he was surprised when a brash presence tapped on the mental walls of his mind and demanded to borrow his magic for a while. 

"Who are you?" he had called out. The presence responded with bombarding him with memories. It had taken him a while to sort them out, however the effort was worth it. Zhuzhen smiled to himself. Ben Hyuga's son lived, and was as impetuous as he could be. Thankfully, he resembled his mother.

*

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"Catherine?" Yuri asked, piece in hand. He shrugged and tucked it into his pocket. Somehow he knew that there were more pieces to collect.

*

The aristocratic man swore fluently as his situation became apparent. Trapped under a landslide, miles from anywhere, it didn't look good. To make matters worse, some impudent brat had stolen his magic 'for the time being' and 'would give it back later.' Later wasn't good enough. He needed it now! At least he wasn't injured in the landslide. He settled back to wait for either his servants to notice his absence and to come and rescue him, or for his magic to return. He really hoped it was the latter. There was nothing worse then having to be rescued by lesser beings like servants.

*

__

"Mum!" Yuri cried, fingers tracing over the piece lightly. "I wish you could see me now! I'm not little any more!" His voice softened. "I wish you were alive still. I wish I could talk to you, get embarrassed over what you had to say about my girlfriends, shout at you when you annoyed me - all the things everyone else could do with their parents. I wish….I had said that I loved you before I killed you. I'm sorry." He placed the piece in his pocket.

"And Dad," he continued, looking at the other piece in his hand. "Why did you go? I need you, and you're not here. You were never here. Not to be whining or anything, but you should have been there! You left me alone, and I hurt Mum! Dad….why?" It was placed in his pocket to join his mother.

Yuri let his feet guide him, let them take him where they willed. He was unsurprised when they led him to two more puzzle pieces. In fact he expected it.

"Clara and Sasha. Together as they should have been in life," Yuri commented sadly. "Fate is a cruel mistress, is she not? If I had not been there, would the two of you still be alive? Living blissfully unaware of the curse that follows me?" He picked up the piece of a smiling girl. "Clara, I hope that your imprisonment is not as cruel as I think it may be. I wish that you could have grown up, married me and done everything that you wanted to."

"And Sasha. A dead prophet bound to the river of time? I'm so sorry. You were supposed to avenge your father, dance, drink, sing off-key hell, and even have massive mud-fights with me. You shouldn't be bound to time, where your quicksilver energy will fade and die." The Sasha piece fell into his pocket.

Smiling grimly, Yuri traced his path back to where he started. His suspicions were confirmed when a picture of a boy who looked like he was painted with watercolours. 

"Alec," Yuri began, but was unable to continue. He reached into his pocket and the pieces spilled onto the floor. As if driven by something, he began to arrange the picture together. His mother next to his father and Auntie Katerina, Sasha next to Clara…the pieces initially seemed not to belong; however once placed, they were right. Tears rolled down the length of his nose, dripping from the tip, onto the pieces. He wiped at them angrily, smearing them across the puzzle pieces.

Once the puzzle was completed, Yuri, still crying silently, reached out to touch it. His fingers slipped through the puzzle, and Yuri gasped as the fragments of memory linked together, to form a cohesive fabric. He now knew who he had been. He only wished that so many people didn't have to die to show him that.

"Hello? Are you alright?" a female voice asked. Yuri opened his eyes and squinted. "Only, you were crying, and it was really creepy. Especially when you started glowing.

"No," Yuri replied and closed his eyes.

*

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The little boy screamed as he fell into the abyss.

Authors Note: Am I evil or what? No, don't answer that, I need the confidence boost after I fail my electrical exam. Anyway, is Valentina that bad really? I always thought of her as a rather independent young woman who thought that Yuri was a bit of a try-hard. Which he is, when you think about it. At least people don't think of her as a Mary Sue. I have a habit of killing off Mary Sues you see, and she's important still (for Yuri angst. What else?)

Reading over my previous chapters, I have winced in horror and am rewriting them as you read this. Also, I'm tying them into one huge HTML document known as the 'Book of Yuri.' However, don't hold your breath! That might be a year project.


	20. The Shakespeare Chapter

Alert: There are quite a few major spoilers in this chapter. If you never did the Seraphic Radiance side-quest, firstly, Why Not? and secondly, there are some spoilers later on. 

"While yes, in the past, we tormented our hosts, reveled in their pain and bathed in their metaphorical blood, now I believe that it is time for us to set this behind us. This young man is our last hope against the oncoming storm, and we will need him. Mark my words, we will need him," Death Emperor began, voice ringing with conviction. He was still in his cage; however, the other fusion souls had left their gravestones to watch the hearing. Death Emperor referred to it as the Spectacle, but that was in the privacy of his own thoughts. He ignored the bitter muttering around him as he continued.

"This…Judge, I shall call it for lack of a better word, will come here and sweep the world clean of all humanity. There is no way that humanity can withstand its wrath, and it will fall. And we too, shall fall, for our fate is intrinsically bound to theirs."

"What of it if the humans perish?" a voice called out. "We shall be freed from our prison!" The muttering increased, as if showing support for this stance. Death Emperor spat upon the crowd.

"What of it?" he demanded. He looked around at the audience, staring at each individual member of it. "That theory is only one of many," he continued, speaking softly. "The accepted theory is thus; if the Harmonixers die, _so shall we_. This haven," Death Emperor gestured, encompassing the Graveyard in his wide arm sweep. "Is our only protection from the ravages of time. If the last should fall, it will collapse like a soap bubble and we will cease to exist. Not to mention the Soul Wells. If this place should fall, they will be let loose upon the world. No, we cannot let this happen. Set me free, allow me to continue my appointed task of molding the Hyuga into one who can face his Judge, and win us a reprieve."

"You were never appointed such a task," another voice cried out.

"I appointed myself to it," Death Emperor replied coolly. "If my task is not to your approval, that is not my concern. My concern is ensuring that my charge lives long enough to see his destiny through. Which, you are keeping me from. Also, I have a duty to discharge to certain individuals." He looked out upon the crowd.

"You know the truth. Will you stand aside and allow me to continue, or rage against the chains of fate?" None of the audience seemed particularly interested in either option. 

"Oh, for the love of…." Amon spat. "Revelation!" In the resulting chaos, she slipped over to Death Emperor and freed him from the cage. He jumped lightly onto the ground and looked at her gratefully.

"Thank you Amon," he replied quietly. She shook her head.

"It was nothing," she replied, shrugging her shoulders. "Now go!" Death Emperor gazed at her one last time, some indescribable emotion in his eyes.

"Go well, Amon and if fate is good, I shall see you again," he whispered. She whispered something into his ear, a soft murmuring of a language two millennia dead. He closed his eyes against the tears in her eyes and disappeared. 

*

__

Yuri ran blindly, from what he did not know. All he knew was that if he could not allow himself to be caught.

"Look, you stupid boy. I shan't hurt you," a familiar voice snarled. Yuri stopped and turned around, eyes wide.

"Yes, it's me. Let me in, damn you, before they catch me," Death Emperor continued. Yuri shook his head in confusion. Death Emperor rolled his eyes and grabbed Yuri by the wrist. His claws punctured Yuri's skin and he dissolved. 

*

Valentina watched in consternation as cuts formed on Yuri's wrists. She bound them and continued walking, cursing bitterly under her breath about fool boys who didn't even have the courtesy of doing their witchcraft closer to her mistress' stronghold.

*

Halley opened dazed eyes and blinked blearily at the smear of red that filled his vision. He groaned and raised his hand to his head, trying to assuage the building headache.

"Halley!" his mother cried softly. "I was wondering if you would ever wake!" Halley smiled slightly and closed his eyes once more. Koudelka leaned in closer, only to sigh in relief when she realised that it was just sleep that had bound him, and not a spell trance.

*

Amon stood in defiance of the crowd, arms folded. 

"I did what was needful," she said disdainfully. She unfolded her arms, sighed mentally and began her speech.

"Something that you all seem to have forgotten. We were once gods and now? We whimper and crawl in the mud, desperately clinging to our misbegotten pride. We have no pride left; we prostituted it for our immortality. However, we can win it back! Allow Death Emperor to fulfill this task he has appointed himself, and we too can win glory! We can aid this Hyuga and achieve a reprieve from the Judge!" She gazed upon the crowd.

"Free ourselves from our self-imposed slavery and allow ourselves to once again alter events in reality! That is all I ask!" She paused, trying to win people with her eyes. The crowd seemed unimpressed. Actually, they were more interested in what was happening behind her. Amon whirled around, only to have her arms pinioned by two fusion souls. She fought furiously, but was unable to break free. Realising the futility of her situation, she began to speak again.

"Cast me out, shall you?" she whispered. "The Hyuga boy will come and he will claim you as battle trophies. Abandoning me to whatever sorcerer with a penchant for demons comes along is cruel, but not as cruel as the fate that boy will have for you. Death Emperor is bitter, and now, _so am I._" The crowd seemed to shrink back for a moment, then shrug nonchalantly, as if saying, that will never happen to them. She turned from them in disgust.

"Take me away. I am weary of their discontent," she spat to her captors.

*

"My lady, the Hyuga boy is here," Valentina whispered from her bow. The subject of her abasement was a clear-eyed thirteen-year-old girl, with waves of dark hair framing a delicate face dominated by huge brown eyes.

"The boy is older then I am physically," the girl replied.

"Ah, my lady, that is true. However your gifts…."

"Yes, my gifts," the girl answered, somewhat bitterly. "Tell me Valentina, what if you could see the end of the world? Could see how one seemingly minor decision could alter the course of fate? What would you do?" Valentina blinked at such a question.

"I would try to alter fate to one that suits my purposes," she replied promptly. The girl shook her head, as if in pity.

"I have tried to alter fate, and sorrow has befallen us. Another, a master player has interfered with my strategy and all has fallen into ruin. And, I see now that my interference was for naught."

"My lady, that is not true! We have the Hyuga boy, we can still salvage something surely!" Valentina protested.

"The Hyuga boy is strong, yes. Strong enough to stand alone? I think not," the girl replied calmly. "And, Valentina, my name is Celeste. You have had always the right to call me by that."

"My lady…Celeste, whether the boy is strong enough or not to bear these burdens is not our concern. We need to focus on salvaging enough from this to ensure our survival," Valentina argued. Celeste raised one hand.

"Valentina, I will not use him as a tool. For one, I cannot force him to sacrifice himself for us. He is not bound to our course, and cannot be so bound. Also, I…we don't even know his name!"

"Yuri," Valentina supplied. At Celeste's slightly incredulous look, she shrugged. "He introduced himself when I gave the Chimera the knives. Which, I may add, he did _not_ use."

"Valentina," Celeste sighed. "We cannot force another onto our path. If Master Kerry refused the offering of the knives, then it is no longer our concern. I did foresee it, but I hoped that we could avert that path."

Yuri moaned quietly from his position on the floor, breaking the tension between the two. Celeste started.

"May I take my leave and escort Master Hyuga to his chambers?" Valentina asked formally. Celeste nodded and Valentina scooped Yuri from the floor. He twitched and one arm moved out, as if to drive away attackers. Valentina sighed and walked away, Yuri still in her arms. 

Celeste watched their departure with wistful eyes. If only she could be as naïve as Valentina, with her insistance that this Yuri Hyuga could be the solution to their problems. He couldn't even take care of himself. When Valentina unceremoniously dumped him on the floor, Celeste had been hard pressed not to cry aloud as she was inundated with Yuri's experiences. She had been very careful not to touch him, fearing that she could have been drawn into that whirlpool, never to return.

She shook her head, as if clearing her mind of Yuri Hyuga and his emotional problems. She had enough dilemmas of her own, without adding those of a psychically fragile boy to them. She reminded herself that he was older then she was, a fact that she had pointed out to Valentina. However, it was hard to remember that when he insisted in presenting a mental image of a small boy with wide brown eyes looking around in confusion at the world and events that he had not foreseen.

And that fusion soul. Celeste struggled to put her finger on what was so significant about it and in particular, the bond between it and Yuri. It seemed especially deep for parasite and host, and as such, required further monitoring. Perhaps the bond with change with time, or with intervention.

*

__

"Yuri, you must wake," a male voice whispered. Yuri rolled over and buried his head in his arms. "I can't stay out here for long, so wake up!"

"Death Emperor, I don't care at the moment," Yuri muttered into his arms, sighed deeply and slipped back into sleep.

"Who said I was Death Emperor?" the voice asked rhetorically. "And if you must insist in sleeping, must it be in the Graveyard? What's wrong with the inside of your head?"

"He and the Graveyard are one," Death Emperor pointed out. "For him, the Graveyard is of his own imagining. He has the Hyuga stubbornness, especially in this regard."

"As did we all," the voice replied wistfully. "From the first to the last, we always fought."

"However, this one hides as well. Have you seen his 'Fox-Face'? Quite unusual, I've found," Death Emperor added. "He believes that it is you. Tragic really."

"Oh?" Ben commented. He grinned wryly. "Nice to know that he has such a high opinion of me. Yet he still searches for proof that I died for real. Subconsciously, admittedly, but still."

"And how do you feel, Ben Hyuga, knowing that you have been the one thing that has shattered his sanity repeatedly?"

"You know how I feel about that!" Ben snapped. "It's heart-breaking, knowing that I can't do a thing about it. That I can't even tell him that I'm sorry for what he has endured and what he will endure, if he should ever encounter it."

"He will," Death Emperor replied calmly. "Now, return to your prison, before you set it free well before he is ready for it." Ben nodded and disappeared.

*

"Yuri? Yuri Hyuga? There are some questions that I need to ask," a soft voice insisted in Yuri's ear as a hand shook his shoulder. Yuri frowned and weakly tried to pull away. Realising the futility of this, he cracked open his eyelids. Unfortunately, that didn't help him much. Now everything was blurry instead of black.

"My name is Celeste and I need some answers. What happened to the Chimera?" the voice continued. Yuri scowled in the general direction of the voice.

"He had a name," he chastised. "His name was Alec. And he died." He heard a soft sigh of exasperation.

"I know that he is dead. I know how, I just don't know why," the voice continued. "He should have lived, I gave him the knives." The voice sounded puzzled. Yuri mentally shrugged. Not his problem.

"He was supposed to merely touch the Soul Well with the knives and all would have been well," Celeste continued. 

"How?" Yuri rasped. "The girl was dead. Had been dead for a long time." Celeste sighed again.

"She was not supposed to be dead. She was supposed to be alive. The lines said that she was alive!" Celeste insisted. Yuri shook his head and smirked feebly.

"Lady, you're not listening. Clara died about five years ago. I remember, I was there." He blinked, and the room swam into focus. As a result, he was rather startled by the young girl staring at him intently.

"And you're just a kid," he blurted in surprise. Celeste shook her head.

"I am no child. I have not been a child in a very long time. And that girl, Clara should have been alive. Unless…." she trailed off, eyes growing wide. 

"Unless…." Yuri prompted.

"The master. He has been interfering for so long?" Celeste whispered. "It cannot be so!"

"Less free association, more explaining things," Yuri suggested. Celeste glared at him. Yuri shrugged. He was not scared of a little girl.

"One more word from you, Hyuga, and I shall tell you of the exact manner of your death. And let me assure you, one of the possibilities is not pretty," she snarled. At Yuri's unimpressed look, she bared her teeth. "And let me assure you, I can do that."

"Woah!" Yuri threw up his hands in the universal 'I have no weapons so don't gun me down here' position. "Someone's a little PMS." Celeste's look could have stripped paint.

"All I have to say to you is this," she said quietly, shoving a hand mirror into his hands. Yuri accepted it blindly. "Look into the mirror and see yourself." With this, Celeste walked out of the room. 

Waiting a few minutes until he was sure that she had gone, Yuri picked up the hand mirror and looked into it. His eyes widened with shock at his new appearance, drawing attention to it. His eye colour had changed, from brown to some weird colour, as if the brown was now being seen through amber glass. It was rather disconcerting. Yuri ran a hand over his face, testing to see if it was really his face. He knew that it was stupid, but some part of him insisted that his eyes couldn't have changed.

"Death Emperor? What's the deal?" he asked quietly, not wanting to draw attention to the fact that he was talking to himself. Death Emperor didn't respond.

"Death Emperor?" Yuri asked again. Then, his voice much smaller and almost trembling, he added, "Why won't you answer?"

Authors Note: Hah! Yuri's screwed over now! Don't worry, there is a reason, and it's not particularly innocuous. This chapter was written with the aid of _the 'flu_ and the resulting fever that goes with it. Hey, it kept the clowns away. Now clowns are scary. 

This chapter was nicknamed the Shakespeare Chapter, because all of the characters seemed to want to rant a lot (he used to call them soliloquies, but we all know the truth, they were rants). Blame Greyfriar's damned 'What kind of writer are you' survey she has linked on her webpage. Supposedly I have read the obscure Shakespeare plays. In reality, I've only read three of his plays. While on that topic, has anyone read Macbeth? Now, if you haven't, and you enjoy Shadow Hearts, that is a play for you! Also, has anyone thought that Yuri would make a good Hamlet? After all, he has already done the graveyard thing with Ophelia/Alice. Ahem. I shall shut up now, before I begin a comparative essay between Shadow Hearts and Hamlet. 

"Get thee to a nunnery!" - snort. Long story. Anyway, don't ever say it in a theatre showing Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. No-one (with the exception of year 12 english students) gets the joke. 

Oh yes, this will be my last update until the 20th June. Finals. How do I loathe thee. However, there should be a chapter up on the 21st!


	21. Souls in Cages

Amon, cast from the Graveyard, tumbled into an abyss. When she stopped, she squinted into the darkness, searching for the unmistakable beacon of light that signified one with the Harmonixing talent was ready for a fusion soul. The unrelenting darkness of the minds of the dumb and blind was not reassuring.

She sighed in frustration as she recollected how it used to be. Originally the Harmonixer talent ran like water through the humans, with many potential hosts to choose from. Over time, the talent faded until it reached a point that one of the parents had to be a full-blooded Harmonixer and the other had to have some of the blood in order to create another one. It seemed that the fusion souls actions of driving their hosts insane would lead to the death of their race, and all for the fleeting taste of power over a lesser being.

In the corner of her eye she noticed a blazing wildfire of talent. Curious, she drew closer; remaining poised to flee if necessary. She smiled slightly as she recognised the distinctive signature of Death Emperor, warped as it was by the human essence of his host. Of course that was to be expected. She knew of his feelings toward the boy, even if he did not.

__

"Amon, it was not supposed to be this way," Death Emperor pleaded. "The boy was supposed to be older, more stable. I had to take on the role of tormentor, to force him to become what he needs to be. I remain in that role, that's all." Amon shook her head.

"How can you be so blind?" she asked. Death Emperor frowned. "Is that what you delude yourself with, that you exist to form him into some image of yours? You're not that stupid."

"What do you know of it Amon?" he demanded, eyes blazing with passion. 

"That you are as dependent on him as he is of you. That you are not merely shaping him into a tool." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "That you harbour some affection toward him." Death Emperor stepped backward and his muscles visibly tensed.

"That is a lie, and a foul one!" he spat. Amon merely looked at him. "I have no affection toward him. He is a tool, and a flawed one at that. However, he is all we have. He is the last!"

"If you have no affection toward him, then why are you in a cage, imprisoned for your unnecessary protection of him? If he is the one that we need, he needs no such protection." Amon waited for Death Emperor to respond. When he did not, she stretched her hand through the bars.

"I only wish that you had the same passion toward me," she commented wistfully. Death Emperor looked up sharply and stared at her with hurt eyes. He reached out and held her hand firmly.

"I do love you Amon!" he protested. "And when he is ready, we can be together once more."

"Yes," she whispered, pulling her hand free and turning away. "At the twilight of the world, where all stands to fall." She walked away, forcing her shoulders back until she was out of Death Emperor's sight. Then she let the façade fall, and she openly wept.

She knew that the boy was not ready yet, the time was not right. She turned her back against the light and squinted into the darkness. Her eyes widened as she saw light blossom in the darkness, indicating that there was a new Harmonixer, contrary to what Death Emperor believed. She moved toward the light, slightly less cautious then before. That was her downfall.

"And who might you be?" an amused English voice asked. "No matter, I have a use for you." Amon screamed as a cage fell over her. Part of her was secretly amused. She had wondered what she would do until the Hyuga boy was ready. In the countless scenarios she envisaged, being imprisoned by a mere human was not one of them. 

*

"Let me out bitch!" Death Emperor screamed, slamming his fists against the mental block between him and Yuri. He heard mocking laughter and redoubled his efforts.

"Now, now. With language like that, why should I do anything for you?" a slightly childish voice asked. "I don't like being called names."

"Yeah?" Death Emperor retorted. "Well, there's plenty more where that came from!"

"You know, for that I think I'll keep the barrier up for longer," the voice replied. "Oh, and before you respond to that, I should tell you that the longer you keep this up, the longer I can inflict pain on your host. He's screaming at the moment, if you're curious." Death Emperor closed his mouth with an audible snap.

"He's not, you know," Ben commented. "Don't worry, she can't hear me, she's gone. She's focussing on fusion souls and has no idea I'm here. It's safe for me to be out."

"How do you know? About him?" Death Emperor demanded. Ben shrugged.

"He has a name. And I can slip past her barriers because I'm not a fusion soul. She established them to keep you and Yuri separate. As an added bonus, she's kept _it_ back too. So I can talk to him. Why do you care?"

"Because he's…"

"The last one left?" Ben interrupted, tone mocking. "You said that about me too, but never went to such extreme lengths to protect me. In fact, you went out of your way to get me killed."

"That was before," Death Emperor protested.

"Surely you knew that the Sight runs in the Hyuga line. It could not have been a surprise when it turned out that I had an slight talent for it," Ben commented.

"Slight is a bit of an understatement," Death Emperor retorted.

"It was limited to family members only. That is a slight talent. Trust me, I've met some truly gifted Seers. In fact, one's maintaining this barrier," Ben replied, gesturing around them to the glittering barrier.

"What? That does not lie in the Seer talent!" Death Emperor spluttered.

"It has for many years. I have a pet theory on it, but this is not the time. Yuri's only just realised what has happened, and he's starting to lose it. I have to go." Ben walked up to the barrier and stepped through, repressing a shiver as magic danced over his skin. Death Emperor watched him go with jealous eyes.

*

__

"Death Emperor is fine, so stop panicking!" a slightly irritated baritone shouted in Yuri's head. Yuri winced and covered his ears with his hands, knowing as he did it that it served no purpose whatsoever. But hey, it made him feel better.

"Who the hell are you?" Yuri demanded. "And what are you doing in my head? And haven't I heard you before?"

__

"Asked enough questions yet? You haven't asked the all-important one,"

"And where's Death Emperor?"

__

"Bingo. Try past tense, I live here, yes, and trapped," the voice replied. Yuri moaned.

"Why do I get stuck with the voices that are physically incapable of structuring a sentence correctly,"

__

"Oh, I know how to. It's just more fun this way. It's my prerogative, to tease you,"

"And how do you justify that?"

__

"Oh! How did you get out? Get back!" a childish voice demanded petulantly. Yuri's eyes widened as he felt a barrier suddenly appear between himself and the male voice. He sighed heavily.

"Nice to see you're finally awake," Valentina commented, her back to him. "You've been asleep since before you came here."

"That sentence made absolutely no sense whatsoever," Yuri complained. "And I did wake up before. Some little kid with serious attitude problems spoke to me."

"No you haven't. My lady would have told me," Valentina pointed out reasonably. 

"I _did_," Yuri insisted. "And your lady is some six year old?"

"I'm not that young," Celeste replied from the doorway. Yuri stared at her as she moved silently into the room. He was sure that he had heard that voice before. "I'm thirteen."

"Yeah, well, you're still a kid," Yuri answered lamely. Celeste raised an eyebrow.

"Spoken from the fount of maturity himself, I'm sure," she replied sarcastically. Yuri shrugged insolently.

"I'm older then you," he pointed out, smirking. Valentina rolled her eyes.

"Are you quite finished?" she asked Yuri. Yuri shook his head ingenuously.

"Oh no, not yet," he breathed. "It's so much fun."

"And what did I do to provoke such hostility?" Celeste asked innocently. Yuri shot her a glare.

"You threatened me earlier, _seer_," he replied. Valentina gasped audibly and Celeste's eyebrow reached her hairline.

"And how do you know that?" Valentina spluttered. "I never told you that!" Yuri shrugged.

"You didn't, she did," he explained, pointing at Celeste, whose face was a mixture of confusion and horror.

"I did nothing of the sort," she blurted. "Who told you?" Yuri shot her a puzzled look from under his hair.

"You did, remember?" he insisted. Valentina sighed.

"I'll be outside, my lady," she offered as she stood up. "Feel free to call me when you know who the traitor is." Celeste waited until the door was shut, then leaned over Yuri.

"I don't know what game you're playing at, Hyuga, but when I say something, you do _not_ disagree. Understand?" she hissed. Yuri smirked.

"I'm hardly going to be scared of some girl," he pointed out. She whispered something under her breath. Yuri struggled to catch it, but it was just below his hearing threshold. His head felt strange, as if someone had been poking through it, rearranging it to his or her liking.

"Do you understand?" she hissed again. Yuri involuntarily nodded, puzzled expression on his face. While he knew that he had no intention of listening to her, somehow she had control of him. Yuri disliked feeling like a marionette and tried to fight her off.

__

"No, leave it alone," Death Emperor whispered at the edge of his hearing. _"We can work around it if necessary. Take it down now and she'll put up a stronger one, and recapture me."_ Yuri fought to keep the surprise off his face, and let his head fall forward so that his hair would obscure his face. He heard Celeste stand up.

"Don't bother fighting it," Celeste suggested. "It will only hurt you and will serve no purpose." Yuri bristled at her condescension. "Do not tell Valentina of our conversation, or anything I have done to you."

Yuri waited until he heard the soft thud of the door hitting the frame before he raised his head.

"What did she do to me?" he demanded quietly.

__

"A compulsion. Strange, I thought that that particular talent was part of the telepath's gift," Death Emperor explained absently.

__

"Telepathy and the Sight were interbred into certain lines as an experiment," the baritone commented. _"She must be the result."_

"She's nuts!" Yuri exclaimed loudly. 

__

"Shut up!" Death Emperor commanded. _"Do you want to draw her attention?"_

"Especially that seeker of hers. That's going to cause problems later on with our escape," the baritone continued.

"Escape?" Yuri asked stupidly.

__

"No, we're just going to stay here with some psycho who can mess with your head anytime she feels like it," Death Emperor replied.

__

"However, that is our problem, not yours. You have to rest up, so that we can escape without you falling flat on your nose," the baritone commanded. Yuri rolled his eyes.

"I'm fine," he pointed out. The baritone laughed. Yuri frowned. He had heard that laugh before.

__

"Try standing up then," it suggested. Yuri decided that he would. He was rather embarrassed when his knees gave out and he bounced onto the bed.

__

"Told you. Now go to sleep!" the baritone commanded. 

"Who are you anyway? You didn't tell me before. I can't keep referring to you as 'hey you!' That's Death Emperor's special title," Yuri asked, smiling slightly.

__

"Not funny," Death Emperor commented. _"Last time I ever tell you family history."_

"Call me Tantalus. It's fitting, after all," Tantalus replied. Yuri's eyelids slipped closed and he fell asleep, slight smile on his face.

__

"Tantalus?" Death Emperor queried.

__

"Greek mythology," Ben replied enigmatically and wouldn't say any more, no matter how often Death Emperor asked.

*

__

Yuri sat down and drew his knees toward his chest. Resting his head onto his knees and wrapping his arms around his legs, he stared tiredly into the darkness, waiting for the inevitable arrival of Fox-Face.

"Let me go," Ben snarled at Death Emperor, who had a rather firm grip on his wrist. "Damn you, let me go!"

"No," Death Emperor replied calmly. "He needs this."

"What? This constant torment? How can you ask me to sit back and watch, now that I can act?" Ben yelled.

"I'm not asking, I'm telling. He needs to accept all of who he is, and the only way to do this is to accept this Fox-Face," Death Emperor continued.

__

"I'm not! I didn't kill him!" Yuri screamed at the implacable fox mask. "It was an accident!"

"You did. I was there, you miserable excuse of humanity. I saw what happened," Fox-Face whispered. Yuri spat into his face. He watched, mesmerised as the spittle slowly slid down the porcelain mask and disappeared.

"Now, was that nice?" Fox-Face crooned. "I think I have to teach you some manners."

Ben turned away and closed his eyes. He winced as Yuri's screams cut through his skull, but made no effort to break free. Once they stopped, and Yuri stopped dreaming for the time being, he turned on Death Emperor.

"Mind explaining?" he snarled.

"It's simple. He can't have this schism. So, he must accept himself," Death Emperor replied reasonably. As such, he was rather startled when Ben jumped him.

"You bastard! That's my son, and you think I can just sit back and watch, like a voyeur, like yourself?" While continuing in this line, Ben was proceeding to beat up Death Emperor, who was unimpressed but reasoned that Ben would get tired quickly. And if he didn't, Death Emperor could always throw him off.

"How can you live with yourself, watching, no, participating in the torture of a child?" Ben continued. "Do you get off on it?"

"Hardly," Death Emperor replied dryly. "Now, let me explain a few things to you. Your vision of your child was only a piece of a puzzle, nothing more. There have been others with the sight, and they have seen that he is integral to our salvation. However, he must live through the trials before he, and by extension everyone, can be judged. That is what I do." Ben scowled darkly.

"If you disapprove, no matter. I have been cast out, because of my active interest. After all, if he dies, the others merely slip away. I, on the other hand, remain bound to this plane and eventually will be driven insane and destroy the world. I don't want this! There are many things I enjoy in this plane, and they will not be taken away because my current host wasn't strong enough to survive!"

"Oh?" Ben raised an eyebrow. "And tormenting him until he's too scared to sleep is how you do that? Personally, I think that's a sure-fire way to shatter his sanity, but by all means, ignore me."

"It's the best I can do until someone else can take over," Death Emperor answered heavily. "Now, leave me alone." Ben opened his mouth, reconsidered and closed it with a snap.

*

The aristocratic man smirked as his magic returned to him in a rush. Channelling it, he forced the rocks away from him and he stood up, smirking. Moving his hand fluidly, he sketched a sigil, with glowed in the air.

"Mr Bacon? It is as you say my lord. There is another Harmonixer. Hyuga bred before you killed him." His message complete, he waved his hand dismissively and the sigil disappeared.

"That man has no right to that title," he spat to the empty air. "One day, he will regret making one of the descendants of Albert Simon bow down and grovel at his feet. One day, I will show him!" With this, he stormed off back to his manor.

Authors Note: I know, early. Too bad. I hate programming in C, maths is boring, physics can go and get stuffed, as can electrical theory and avionics. So I thought I'd write this instead. I'll probably fail my finals, but who cares! I don't have to pay until after I finish anyway!

Tantalus was a man that went to hell and was tormented by food and drink that he could see but it kept moving just out of reach. As he was eternally hungry and thirsty, this was a rather nasty punishment. I thought that this name would be fitting for Ben, considering his position.

I also did a quiz the other day, "What element would you rule over?" Supposedly I'd be the goddess of the night. Fitting really.

And I've started a YahooGroup for Shadow Hearts. At the moment, it's incredibly crude, but feel free to join and offer your expertise!

Greyfriars: Yes, Dunsinane is in Macbeth. I liked that play, mainly because of the descriptions. My English teacher thought I was morbid. Oh well, it was fun. Tayside forest is in Richard II. Don't ask me where the 'pound of flesh' came from. Probably some dead writer. They always seem to write the lines that stick in your head.

Actually, I've always thought of the fusion souls as being either asexual or hermaphrodites. The host mentally assigns a gender to them according to which soul gets there first, and what gender the host is. So, if say, a female Harmonixer got Death Emperor, she would think of Death Emperor as female. The relationship between Death Emperor and Amon can also be thought of in these terms. Amon is either male or female, depending on the sexual preference of the host. So, if Zhuzhen (of Shadows of Silence fame) was a Harmonixer, he would think of both Death Emperor and Amon as male. How we perceive ourselves, gender wise, makes up a lot of our identity, so I reasoned that the fusion souls would be part of this.

Gutterfiend: Tragically, adjudicators believe that ranting in a debate is incorrect form and penalise accordingly. As you can imagine, that does cause a problem for me. Oh well.

Nat: It's very tempting to write a side story about Death Emperor and Amon, explaining what history they share. Maybe after the finals, and I finish some of my projects (I have about six sitting in my 'Get yourself organised and write these stories, damn you' list.)

Kimgrasshopper: Zhuzhen does annoy me. Why else would I write a fic where he is tormented, and it's by his own doing? (Apart from the obvious - that I'm a twisted individual)

I'm struggling with Death Emperor. He's being cantankerous, and in revenge, I might draw a chibi-DE. Considering that I can't draw, that will be scary.

While you're shooting your dentist, could you shoot my orthodontist? He insists that I wear this retainer of doom, which causes my teeth to ache for hours. Which could explain a lot really.

Nina: Valentina is here to stay. Very important to both Celeste and oddly enough Ben. Long story. Don't worry, there will be Valentina angst, where you can laugh at her suffering.

Rex: I'm up to chapter 21. Where were you for chapter 20? (sob)

Noodles: Thank you. Also, damn you, you reviewed Aegis' new story before me. I hate being in a different time zone sometimes…

Thanks also go to my beta reader Aenea (even though she hasn't read all of this chapter yet), who has still not finished Shadow Hearts, mainly because I'm currently using my room to cram for exams and wild parties with my imaginary friends. And no, the PS2 remains in my room; I paid for it, so there. Also, Evanescence and Queensryche have a lot to answer for.


	22. Stains and Chains

"My lady," Christopher Simon greeted, his voice obsequious. "It is a pleasure to see you are well. You're as beautiful as ever." Celeste blushed prettily under the praise, then seemed to remember herself and the flush faded. Christopher hid a smirk. Yes he knew how to manipulate this one.

"I believe you are having some problems with someone interfering with your plan?" he asked archly, face quizzical. Celeste nodded once and gestured for him to continue. "I do believe I have an answer for you. He is a master, and you should not feel ashamed to have been best by him." Celeste's face darkened, as he knew it would. She was so transparent, this girl. So trusting.

"His name is Roger Bacon, and he has been alive for an extraordinary length of time. A necromancer, summoner and Seer, he has been keeping an eye on the Hyuga line for some time. Almost fifty years. He has Seen that you will have the Hyuga child in your possession, and he wants it as revenge for what its father did to his colleague. He will take it, if you do not put up protections around it now, and you will lose everything." He bowed deeply. "And now, my lady, I must take my leave. Please excuse my rude departure, but the hour is getting late." He traced a sigil into the air, closed his eyes and disappeared.

"Track him," Celeste demanded. Valentina nodded. "I don't trust him."

*

Roughly shoving a shirt into a leather backpack, Valentina let her mind wander. Her eyelids closed partway and her unfocused stare wandered aimlessly. In her mind's eye she could see dancing lights everywhere, a blinding rainbow of light. She winced and narrowed her focus.

Directly in front of her was a double helix of black and amber, whirling into infinity. She mentally tagged that image as 'Yuri Hyuga' and moved on. A solid purple pillar of light shone brightly at the edge of her vision, and was labelled 'Lady Celeste.' Although those red stains were somewhat concerning. And there was the dark, murky green that could only be the residue of Christopher Simon. She extended a mental finger and touched the green puddle. She shuddered at the slime that coated her fingers, but an image appeared in her head of exactly where Christopher Simon was. This achieved, she continued to pack her bag.

Struck by an impulse, she picked up a novel. Yuri was bound to be bored and if he was reading, he wouldn't be trying to wander around. It was a pity that she didn't look at the cover.

*

"That's a romance novel," Yuri commented in detached horror, staring wide eyed at the cover. "I didn't know you could do that!" Valentina looked at the cover, blushed slightly and flipped it over to the back cover.

"It can't be that bad," she protested. "Look, it says 'Amillia, a strong-minded woman, is sent to the far reaches of the country by her evil brother Roger, who is intent on her inheritance. However she meets a mysterious stranger who walks the moors of a night, masking his face to the world. Curiosity piqued, she endeavours to find the man behind the mask.' See? It's not that bad!" Yuri gave her a skeptical look.

"Alright, I'll read you a passage," Valentina replied, opened the book toward the back and began to scan the page. She started to blush fiercely.

"Oh my," she breathed. "I didn't know that was possible." Yuri looked at her in confusion as the flush spread down her neck. "Come to think on it," she continued unsteadily. "I might keep this."

"No, no," Yuri protested, hands waving in negation. "I don't mind reading it." Valentina closed the book with a snap and raised her eyebrows.

"Are you sure? It _is _a romance novel," she offered weakly. Yuri nodded eagerly and Valentina tossed the book onto his bed.

"Have fun."

*

"So," Ben drawled from his sprawl on the ground. "What was the deal with you suddenly liking my son after all? He's a nice kid, for sure, but why the attachment? I thought you were a soulless monster." He propped himself up on his elbows and studied Death Emperor, not expecting a response.

"At the beginning of time, I was not a soulless monster. I was a god, and I danced among the stars with my soulmate, Amon," Death Emperor began slowly. "We danced, sang and generally enjoyed all of the fruits of life. And yet, this golden era came to an end, as all do, and we were diminished. Eventually we had no choice but to bind ourselves to a human soul to ensure our survival. My choice was Yuki Hyuga, a peasant boy with a poet's soul and an affinity to darkness. Yuki was the first Hyuga seer, as you know. His daughter Killian was the first Harmonixer and her determination to defy the fate I gave her was an inspiration to me during the dreary days where a Harmonixer would spiral into madness simply because of my presence. 

"It was not until recent generations that Harmonixers appeared that had her determination and spirit. Her ability to rebuild herself after all of her illusions had been shattered. I don't want to see that completely gone from the Hyuga line once more." Ben raised an eyebrow at this.

"So, in essence, you like Yuri because he reminds you of Killian," Ben summarised. Death Emperor growled at the back of his throat.

"It's not that simple!" Death Emperor snarled.

"Which leads to the question of why you pushed him so hard when he was a child. Oh wait, I think I have that as well. You were testing him, to see if he could rebuild himself. To see if he was a worthy successor to this Killian. And who gave you the right to test my son?" Ben demanded. Death Emperor bristled.

"I claim the right of paternity. You were not a father to him during the dark years, when all he had was a fusion soul and two dead parents. The only constant in these last eight years was I, and as such I have been the confidant of your son. I tested your son to see if we could rely on him to make the right decision, to see if he was strong willed enough to defy this Judge and decide the future of everyone on this world and connected worlds. I aligned myself to this line millennia ago, and I am ultimately responsible the end of it. It will not end because Yuri was weak!" Ben frowned. "What?" Death Emperor demanded.

"You called him Yuri. You never do that," Ben pointed out. Death Emperor snarled. "Oh stop it! You know that I'm not scared of you. I never was."

"No, but I do know what you are scared of," Death Emperor said sweetly.

"Not anymore," Ben said sadly. "I wish my fears were as simple as that now."

"You're scared of not being able to act. You could never stand inaction," Death Emperor continued. Ben shook his head.

"No, for I am resigned to that now. My fears are both more and less tangible than that."

__

"Would you two shut up? I'm trying to read here," Yuri commented plaintively.

"I didn't know he could read," Death Emperor commented.

"Of course he can!" Ben retorted, affronted. "I taught him to when he was six."

"There's no need to act like that," Death Emperor replied slyly. "Anyway, what is he reading?"

"Judging by the blushing…." Ben began. Death Emperor gestured for him to continue. "A porn magazine." If Death Emperor could raise an eyebrow, he would have.

"Did you give him the talk?" Death Emperor asked, evil grin on his face. Ben frowned slightly in confusion. "The talk. You know, where babies come from?" Ben's horrified face was answer enough.

"Did you?" Ben retorted quickly. Death Emperor shook his head. "So you mean to tell me that we have an eighteen year old boy who has no idea about sex." Death Emperor nodded again. "So what the hell is he reading?"

__

"I do know about sex," Yuri protested. _"I do listen to other people, you know."_

"Alec," Death Emperor replied heavily. "Knew I should have killed him when I had the chance."

"Yuri," Ben asked. "What are you reading?" Yuri became very silent very quickly. Death Emperor frowned for a moment, then snickered.

"It's a romance book," he replied between snickers. "A particularly bad one." Ben's eyes widened. 

"Put it down! Now!" he barked. 

__

"Why?" Yuri asked in confusion. _"It's getting interesting."_

"Because they're addictive. Once you read one, you have to read them all!" Ben replied, voice rising in volume.

__

"It is strangely absorbing," Yuri mused, still reading.

"Give up," Death Emperor replied. "I've always wanted a homosexual host. Or a bisexual one. Always wondered how they do that."

"Death Emperor! You voyeur!" Ben blurted, eyes wide in horror. "And Yuri's not gay!"

"Like you'd know," Death Emperor replied. "You didn't know about Zhuzhen."

"What?" Ben's voice had jumped an octave. "Zhuzhen wasn't gay!"

"Oh yeah?" Death Emperor challenged. "The guy sat there on the night before you died and watched you. I saw it. He was devouring you with his eyes. He used to stare at you when you weren't looking. He was gay!"

__

"Who's Zhuzhen?' Yuri asked plaintively.

"Never you mind," Death Emperor and Ben replied in unison.

__

"Could you please shut up then?" Yuri asked. _"I want to read this without you reminiscing about the era before the wheel."_

"I'll have you know that I was born significantly after the wheel was invented," Ben retorted hotly.

"Same here," Death Emperor chimed in.

__

"What are you doing? You stupid boy!" a girl's voice hissed.

__

"Celeste?" Yuri replied quickly. _"What are you doing?"_

"Shut up!" she snapped. Death Emperor's jaw dropped as he felt Yuri's eyes widen. He turned to Ben, who wore a grim expression on his face.

"She's back," he replied cryptically. "Keep an eye for Yuri for me. I've got to disappear before she finds me." He closed his eyes and vanished back to the prison.

A young girl appeared, long dark hair tumbling over her shoulders and cascading down her back. She stared at Death Emperor with implacable brown eyes.

"Hello Death Emperor," she replied calmly. "I have an offer for you." Death Emperor looked at her in bewilderment. "If you give me the key to the fusion souls' realm, then I will allow your freedom."

"What?" Death Emperor heard himself say. "I don't have that key. Never have."

"No?" the girl replied. "Your host does though. Buried inside his mind. You can get it, I know you can."

"But what about Yuri?" Death Emperor protested. His voice seemed under water.

"This isn't about Yuri," the girl replied softly. "It has always been about you." She smiled, a smile devoid of all happy emotions. It was a smile from the darkness inside a human soul. "Although I am willing to hurt him to….convince you."

"You can't!" Death Emperor blurted. "I'll kill him first."

"Existence itself is a struggle, from womb to grave." the girl replied cryptically. "He will fight you." She paused for a moment. "I take it you are not going to co-operate?" Death Emperor glared. She sighed.

"Remember, you brought this upon him." She disappeared.

*

"Now, little Hyuga," Celeste crooned in his ear. "What shall I do with you?" Yuri stared at her wide-eyed. She had done something to his mind, he wasn't sure what exactly, and now he couldn't move.

"You are a pretty thing," she continued. "All angles and planes." She reached a hand out to play with his hair.

__

"Do you want to know what I can do when I want to?" she whispered in his mind. Yuri shook his head fervently, the only movement available to him.

__

"I don't care. I'll show you anyway," she replied softly and began.

Authors Note: Sorry about the late update. The Shadow Hearts Muse left my house early last week and I haven't found her again. That explains the chapter quality.

It may seem like a shock about Celeste, but if you read everything she's said, it's all there. I promise! And CLUE!!!! (jumps up and down pointing at story) It's there! And thanks go to Aegis for Celeste's little quote. And you thought Death Emperor would say it?

Greyfriars: Stuff is perfectly technical. I've seen it in technical reports so it must be okay. And I have been banned from drawing for the rest of my natural life. So if chibi Death Emperor's what you want, you'll have to find an artist. 

Nat: C is the nemesis of my life. And unfortunately I'm stuck with it. It's terse, difficult to read and a monster to debug. And thank you for the luck. My finals went very well.

Gutterfiend: Celeste will get slapped around, I promise. Just…not yet. Glad you liked the theory. I have hundreds of them tucked away in my room somewhere

Aegis: Hope this chapter answers some questions. Yuri does not have the sight. Have explanation as to why, if anyone wants to read it. Spectral sight….I'm not finished with that yet. And Fox-Face vs Ben? I wonder……

JadedKatrina: Alec was meant to die. In fact I created him for that express purpose. Glad to know that people still like poor little Alec. I'm not entirely finished with him either. There's a scene left to go in the Alec saga.

Noodles: Yes I did know that Koudelka was a prequel. Sadly I can't get hold of it. Stupid imports!

And if anyone's curious, I have a little Alec ficlet. Feel free to email me if you want to read it.


	23. Blood Magics

Note: This chapter, for content, is rated R. I told all of the list members this would happen eventually, but if anyone cannot or will not read an R rated chapter, feel free to hit the back button. I certainly won't be offended. 

"Where is he?" Valentina demanded. She had followed Christopher Simon for what seemed to be ages; invoking a spell her mistress had given her to travel space very quickly. Feeling the ground shift under her feet made her feel rather queasy, but it was a small price to pay in the whole scheme of things. Celeste had contacted her during one of the space-leaps, informing her that Hyuga had attempted to escape, but she had things under control. However, Valentina could sense a masked urgency, as if Celeste was running out of time. 

The trail had ended here, in a dark, dank cave that smelt unpleasantly of mildew and decaying flesh. She scrunched up her nose as she squinted into the cave, wondering how on earth the trail had stopped without Simon being in front of her. She reached into her backpack and extracted a box of matches. She set one alight and dropped it in her shock. She lit another. While the light was feeble and flickered constantly, Valentina knew now why Simon's signal had faded.

He lay at her feet…sort of. His head lay at her feet anyway, devoid of eyes, lips and ears. Fighting back the urge to be sick, she glanced around for a potential brand. Having found one, she picked it up and set fire to it. The ground was illuminated to a greater extent and Valentina could see the rest of the cadaver. He appeared to have been dismembered, his broken body a macabre jigsaw puzzle.

"Ew," she commented, feeling her face pale. "Who did this to you, Simon?" she asked rhetorically. A glyph sparked to light as she uttered his name, as if it was keyed to it. She reached out a hand instinctively to touch the glyph.

_"Star-eyed's Soldier, your punishment for your interference. Tell the Star Eyed to no longer interfere with the plans of Roger Bacon!"_ The voice reverberated in her skull, an amused male voice, somewhere in between a tenor and a baritone, marked distinctively with an English accent. Valentina covered her ears with her hands, realizing as she did so that it was futile and a little silly.

She stepped sideways, only to have the ground give slightly under her foot. She moved the torch toward the ground, dreading what she would see. Under her foot was Simon's eye, flattened by the pressure exerted by her foot. Valentina ran outside where she vomited helplessly. Once she was under control, she wiped her mouth with her sleeve and closed her eyes.

_"My lady, Simon is dead, executed by Roger Bacon,"_ she thought fiercely. Celeste didn't respond. Discomfited, Valentina tried again. Still nothing. Shrugging, Valentina invoked the space-leap spell. Maybe Celeste was too distracted to talk to her at the moment.

*

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess, with hair of ebony and eyes that captured the midnight sky. She lived in the Italian Alps with her father and two brothers. Her mother had passed away long ago, long before the girl could remember, but she did not mind. Her father and brothers were family enough for her.

On her sixteenth birthday, her father presented her to a handsome man, with black flashing eyes and neatly combed dark brown hair and said, "This is your new husband, my dear." The girl was slightly offended that her father hadn't consulted her first, but it was the convention at the time, so she acquiesced. 

The man, a French nobleman with whom her father desired an alliance, swept the princess away to his castle. He was good and kind to her until she fell pregnant with their child. She whispered her news to him in the darkness, and he was overjoyed at the prospect.

However, as her waist thickened, he would look at her differently, adoration metamorphosing to distaste. He would disappear for long periods, returning to their bed just before daylight. When she asked him about it, he shrugged it off, replying that he had business to attend to.

The girl was naïve, and believed him, ignoring the advice given to her by her handmaiden that he was straying into another's bed. She refused to believe her servant and dismissed her for spreading lies. Her husband kept disappearing, but the girl trusted him.

Finally her child was born, a girl with the brown hair of her father and the midnight blue eyes of her mother. She was presented to the court the next week and proclaimed the trueborn daughter of the German lord, and the heir until a male son of the German lord was presented. 

Her husband continued to stray from their bed, and the girl began to wonder about the validity of the rumours. She knew how disappointed he was about her giving birth to a daughter, though he never showed that to the court. When there was a witness, he was the epitome of a loving father, however, when they were alone…. The girl became adept of hiding bruises and ignoring certain events. Like the pregnancy of a widowed lady, and her husband's barely hidden joy at the prospect, her perfume lingering on his body, her paints on his skin.

She woke early one morning, wondering why her daughter did not cry. She walked into the nursery and gazed down at the blue face of her daughter for an eternity. The nurse found her there and escorted her back to bed, where she was fed a sleeping draft. While she slept, it was announced that the German lord had a male heir, a baseborn son with noble German blood flowing though his veins.

The girl awoke to her husband shaking her roughly. She squinted hazily up at his face and begged to be told why he was treating her in such a manner. His response shocked her.

"My lady," he replied, mocking emphasis on her title, "You are now superfluous. I have my heir and your family shall not wonder if you die from grief." With this, he shoved his dagger into her chest. "But, I believe in taking my rights as a husband," he continued, removing his pants.

Had the German lord done his research correctly, he might have foreseen what could happen. The girl's mother had come from a long line of witches, had even sacrificed herself to ensure her daughter would possess this arcane gift. Unfortunately, accepting a sacrifice means you also accept the conditions that go with it, in the girl's case, the inability to access it. She was a magical brood mare and nothing more. However, these restrictions can be broken if enough magic is channeled through the girl. The most potent of magic's are the ones that involve blood or sex.

As the German lord was raping her, the restrictions on the girl's magic broke. She screamed and the German lord's mind shattered. The knife was knocked further into her chest. The girl gasped out a curse on her family, for bonding her to this man and for ultimately being the cause of her death. She died shortly afterward.

The curse took a long time to activate, as all potent curses do. It was, after all, dependent on the birth of a girl that closely resembled the girl, with her magic. When this girl turned six, voices would whisper in her ear and she would lose track of time. Her family died strangely, without a mark on them, leaving the girl an orphan. The death of the last one, her favourite brother ignited her unexpected gift as a Seer and she could see the end of time, if she so desired. The wronged girl from long ago started to channel herself into this Seer to force her to break the barrier between the living and the dead and set her free. 

*

The narration ended abruptly and Yuri's head spun. He was extremely confused. Who or what was the story about? Did it matter at all? 

_"Ah, that's what she's planning,"_ Death Emperor commented. _"Quite ingenious, I must say. Not that I agree with the possession, but it would certainly be effective."_

"What?" Yuri blurted, feeling like he had missed something. Celeste turned to him sharply. _"What possession? And that's a little rich, coming from you,"_ he thought, concentrating on each individual syllable. Death Emperor chucked.

"Wondered when you'd work it out. Congratulations, you are officially the slowest individual to work out that I can't actually hear you."

_"Yeah,"_ Yuri replied, having not thought anything of the sort. _"So what exactly is going on?"_

_"You remember the girl wronged by her husband? Well, she's planning to tear open the veil between the living and the dead, so that she can possess Lady Celeste. Chances are, the girl has absolutely no idea what's going on. She's just a tool,"_ Tantalus explained patiently. __

_"Oh,"_ Yuri replied intelligently.

_"I told you we needed to keep her alive,"_ Tantalus commented. Yuri felt his face crease into a frown. What was Tantalus talking about? Apparently, not to him, as Death Emperor snorted.

_"You cannot possibly be considering that plan," _he replied. _"It won't work. The boy won't do it."_ From that, Yuri knew that they were talking about him, but other than that, he had no idea.

_"He'll have to,"_ Tantalus replied heavily. _"Though I doubt he'd mind all that much. Let me assure you, I'm not happy with the idea at all. I can't even take over either. He must be the channel, not me."_

_"True,"_ Death Emperor conceded. _"The magic would be more potent then."_

_"What magic?"_ Yuri replied plaintively. 

"My lady," Valentina began, breaking Yuri's concentration. "Did you get my message?" Yuri could hear her tap her foot in frustration at the long time it took Celeste to reply.

"No," she replied finally, drawing out the word. "Could you repeat it?" Valentina sighed.

"Christopher Simon has been killed by Roger Bacon. He warns you not to interfere with his plans," Valentina replied impatiently.

"That man sees too far and yet not enough!" Celeste replied sharply. "If he truly Sees, then he should be able to See exactly the benefit my work has on preventing the death of the world!" Valentina nodded, then frowned.

"My lady, if I am not being too impertinent, may I ask what your work truly is?" she asked subserviently. 

"No!" Celeste snapped. She visibly softened. "I cannot tell you because if you are captured, Bacon will force you to reveal his secrets. I have told you this before, have you forgotten?" Valentina looked embarrassed. "Let us not speak of this again." Valentina nodded and left, interpreting it as a dismissal.

_"It's done," _Tantalus replied. _"She'll be able to listen when I speak now. I must say, that is one tight bond her mistress has her on."_ Yuri was still confused and said as much. Both Tantalus and Death Emperor replied that they would tell him when the time was right. Yuri gritted his teeth and barely stopped himself from saying something that he would regret later.

*

_"Valentina,"_ a voice whispered in Valentina's mind. _"Listen to me, Valentina." Valentina frowned, but concentrated on the voice with the ease of long practice. She winced slightly at the all-too-familiar feeling of having someone rifle their fingers through her memory.___

_"It's been going on for so long,"_ the voice whispered, tinged with despair. _"Lady Celeste is almost gone."_

"What!" Valentina blurted aloud. "She's not gone, I can still see her in the next room."

_"What you see is a possession. I know you have seen the mingling of two psyches. You know, though you don't want to admit it, what that means. I can help you free Celeste from her,"_ the voice offered. _"Yuri and you, working in tandem, can break the spell." Valentina mulled that over for a moment, curious about the idea of working in tandem with Hyuga. Her eyes widened as she remembered her magic theory lessons._

"You've got to be kidding," she retorted. "Even if I accept, we don't have a channel, and from what I can see, neither of us have enough magic."

_"Yuri can act as the channel. And he does have the magic, but it's locked behind his harmonixing talent, a gift from his mother if you will. We can circumvent the restrictions and access that magic, but only if he acts as the channel,"_ the voice replied. Valentina felt herself smirk.

"You cannot possibly tell me that…" she began.

_"Yes,"_ the voice replied. _"For a time there, we were worried that he didn't even know what it was."_

"Oh, that's precious!" she replied, starting to snicker. "So he's seventeen and ….capable as acting as a channel?"

_"Yes,"_ the voice replied, getting a little annoyed. _"Can we move off that topic please? It makes me feel uncomfortable discussing it in relation to Yuri."_

"Why?" Valentina asked. "And who are you, anyway?" The voice sighed.

_"My name is Ben. I'm Yuri's father,"_ the voice replied in resignation. Valentina lost the battle and started laughing in earnest.

"You're discussing your son's sex life!" Valentina shrieked. Ben flinched.

_"I prefer not to think about it,"_ he replied primly. _"Will you do it? I warn you, if you do, the thing possessing Celeste may turn on you." Valentina shrugged._

"Ben, when I was twelve, my father asked me to swear an oath to Celeste's father, promising to protect her with all of my abilities. I was neglectful and my lady suffered. I agree." Valentina paused for a moment, and when she continued, her voice had a decidedly nervous tone to it. "How long had she been possessed?" Ben contemplated lying to her, then decided against it.

_"Since she was six,"_ he replied, leaving her to her thoughts.

*

_"She's agreed," _Tantalus reported. _"She'll get everything ready, all we have to do is prepare Yuri." Yuri didn't like the sound of that. It reminded him of being prepared as a sacrifice._

_"Prepare me for what, exactly?"_ he demanded. Death Emperor snickered.

_"You, my boy, are going to get laid,"_ he replied in tones of great glee. Tantalus made a noise of pain.

_"Cool,"_ Yuri replied. 

_"Actually, it's a powerful magical rite," _Tantalus replied primly. _"There's some intercourse involved, but it's secondary."_

_"I don't think he really cares,"_ Death Emperor replied dryly. _"He is an adolescent boy after all."_

_"Don't remind me,"_ Tantalus replied, his tone weary and martyred. _"Anyway, what will happen is that you'll become the channel to a hell of a lot of magic which you have to direct toward removing Celeste's possession. Yuri? Yuri, stop that and listen to me! You need to know this!"_ Yuri was humming a little tune, apparently rather excited at the prospect of the rite.

_"Yeah, yeah,"_ Yuri replied. _"Get laid, kick evil-lady's ass, go home."_

*

Valentina nodded to herself. Everything was ready; all that was needed was Yuri. She fidgeted with the bloodletting knife, running her fingers gently along the edge. While this Ben was confident that they wouldn't need blood, Valentina wasn't so sure. She glanced up at her clock and nodded to herself. It was time to begin. 

She walked casually over to Yuri's room, touched him and invoked the space-leap spell. She reopened her eyes in her room and nodded in satisfaction. Her wards were completely unbreakable unless she personally let someone in, a gift from her cousin. There was no chance that Celeste would break their wards tonight.

She turned and smiled reassuringly at Yuri, who was looking decidedly nervous. He smiled back in response, a quick flash of teeth before his bottom lip returned to its original position of under his top row of teeth. He sighed and stared down at his feet.

"You nervous?" she asked wryly. It was clear that he was, whether at the prospect of acting as a channel or the sheer amount of magic that he'd be handling, she wasn't sure. When he answered, she grinned. Of course it would be because of that.

"It's a magical rite," she replied patiently. "That's just an amplifier." Judging from the grimace, that was the wrong thing to say. Valentina shrugged. It wasn't as if this was easy for her either. She sighed and darkened the room, leaving one candle alight. She picked up the candle and held it in front of her.

"On the turn of the day, I invoke thee," she began. "I, a daughter of the Fabri line, bring into play the protection of the Holy Trinity, as is my birthright." Her hair, which she had pulled out of it's usual braid, started to shift and shiver. Yuri stared at it with wide eyes. 

_"Say, 'I, a son of the Krevolenin line, bring into play the protection of the Holy Trinity, as is my birthright,"_ Tantalus commanded. Bewildered, Yuri repeated what he was told. He could feel his hair stand up on end.

"As I blow out this candle, so mote it be," Valentina continued. She blew out the candle, plunging them into darkness. "You ready?" she asked. Yuri gulped audibly.

"Yes," he replied.

*

Celeste felt the hairs on her neck tingle and she turned around. She stared in horror at the sheer quantity of magic being summoned in Valentina's room. Screaming in rage, she invoked the space-leap spell to Valentina's room, only to land outside the wards. She swore, something that sounded worse coming out of her mouth, and began to unwork the wards.

*

In Yuri's opinion, this was a lot of fun. He had no idea why he had waited so long for this. Which was why he was rather annoyed when he became detached from his body, and attempted to go back. His eyes widened though, as he could feel a surging force pulsing_ through_ him, seemingly collecting more magic as it went. He could feel the bond between him and Death Emperor loosen slightly, and magic he was completely unaware that he had raced through him. He frowned and struggled to remember what he was doing. The magic was fascinating, drawing his attention in the play of light on it, the shimmer, even the texture.  He opened his mind further, allowing more magic to pass through him. He was the magic.

*

Valentina stared up into Yuri's now white eyes and luminescent body and shivered. Reaching up a hand, she slapped him. Hard. His head recoiled from the blow, but neither his eyes nor his skin changed. Valentina sobbed as she freed her arm and grabbed the knife she had left within arm's reach. Ben's opinion to the contrary, she was going to have to use blood as the anchor. She nicked open a cut on her arm and opened a similar on Yuri. Daubing her fingers in the blood, deliberately mingling it, she painted a rough circle around them. She sighed in relief as the glow seemed to disappear from Yuri and sat down within the circle to act as a monitor.

*

Yuri blinked in confusion. He had no idea what had just happened, but now he was himself again, and he knew what he had to do. He closed his eyes and concentrated on Celeste. He scowled at the red that slimed her and began to burn it off. It was not an easy task, as he was fought at every step.

*

Valentina watched in calm detachment as Celeste managed to remove the wards and storm into her room. She smiled in triumph as Celeste was forced to remain a certain distance away from the circle. Yuri sighed and Valentina looked down at him. His face was screwed up in a scowl, eyes now closed.

Celeste threw herself at the circle, only to be forced back. Valentina winced, and a crafty smile appeared on Celeste's face.

"You care what happens to her, don't you?" she asked. Valentina stared back at her, stony faced. "I can hurt her, you know. Completely shatter her mind. You know I can do that. Take down the barrier." Valentina did not reply. "Very well." Celeste seemed to metamorphose and Valentina was surprised that she hadn't noticed that Celeste was possessed. 

"Vallie?" she asked plaintively. "What's going on?" Valentina closed her eyes and bowed her head. "Vallie, I'm scared. She keeps saying that if you don't lower the barrier, she'll kill me."

"She'll kill you if we do," Valentina replied, voice harsh. She looked up at Celeste. "You understand?" Celeste shook her head. "I'm not going to lower it." Celeste screamed then, a broken sound of pain. Valentina closed her eyes and bowed her head again to hide her frustrated tears.

"Give it up," Yuri commanded softly. "You can not have her, or me." Valentina's head whipped around to see Yuri, propped on his elbows, staring at Celeste. "Let her go. She did not betray you, Astrid."

"No!" Celeste screamed. "She is of my family, she will bring me back! She owes it to me!"

"I'm sorry, Astrid," Yuri replied. His demeanour changed. "You will leave this plane and return to the land beyond the veil."

Celeste/Astrid stared at him with wide eyes, then collapsed. The spell collapsed around them and Valentina stood up, racing over to Celeste's fallen body. She stared back at Yuri, despair in her dark eyes.

"She's dead," she breathed. Yuri nodded.

"I know," he replied quietly. His eyes closed involuntarily and Valentina raced back to him, shaking him vigorously. He opened his eyes and stared at her hazily. "Something's wrong," he fretted. He frowned and transformed. Valentina stared at his alter ego with wide eyes and winced as he seemed to recoil in pain. He reverted back, face very pale. "I can't talk to Death Emperor anymore."

"The magic probably overloaded your brain, sealing it off," Valentina replied softly. "It may come back in time." Yuri shook his head. 

"It feels permanent," Yuri replied slowly, his voice slowing down and slurring words together. Valentina grabbed a blanket off of her bed and wrapped Yuri in it, who made an incoherent noise, which she interpreted as a thank you.

Sighing, she picked up her clothes, got dressed and started to clean up her room. The blood was going to be hell to get off.

Authors Note: The chapter has finally arrived! The next one will probably take longer, just so you all know. But, to be nice, I thought I'd make it twice as long. I fear I didn't explain this sufficiently in the chapter, so quick explanations!

Quick explanation on Valentina's talent. Her ability to see auras (although she doesn't call them that) is restricted by the fact that there must be a barrier between her and the seeked object. This is really a defense mechanism, so that she doesn't go mad in a crowded room, for example. Although, she'd be utterly brilliant at forensics.

Channels: A person can only act as a channel once in their life, usually during their first sexual experience as their ability is heightened. However, if you are desperate enough (generally you have to be very close to death and incredibly bitter) and you have not acted as a channel before, you can act as one momentarily, generally to unlock latent magic. Astrid was able to do that, and had she lived, she would have been a witch. Yuri, on the other hand, cannot access his magic from his mother ever again, because the Harmonixing took precedence over it. (Gotta suck to be one of those, huh?)

The Holy Trinity: A tripartite religion consisting of three goddesses, the Maiden, the Mother and the Crone, indicating the natural passage of life. Generally there's three Priestesses that take on these roles and a lot of worshipers. Yuri's mother was one of the worshipers – a strange thing for a Russian to be. I might one day write a story explaining how a Celtic religion made it to Russia and Anne's involvement in it, including a reason for Anne's cross.

As for Yuri having magic, well, it's a double-sided sword. He knows now that he has it, but he can't access it, as his becoming a Harmonixer removed that access. I can't remember if it's in the revised drafts on my computer, or the ones I posted, but I mentioned that his mother had magic as well. Actually, in the Shadow Hearts universe, everyone has magic to a certain extent, so it seemed reasonable that he had inherited something from his mother. Pity he can't use it…


End file.
